Shloka 50
धर्मनिन्दा–धर्मोपासनाफलम् तथा साध्वाचारलक्षणम्
Fruits of Disparaging vs. Observing Dharma; Marks of Good Conduct
न योनिर्नापि संस्कारो न श्रुतं न च संतति: । कारणानि द्विजत्वस्य वृत्तमेव तु कारणम्
na yonir nāpi saṁskāro na śrutaṁ na ca santatiḥ | kāraṇāni dvijatvasya vṛttam eva tu kāraṇam ||
Śrī Maheshvara dit : «Ni la naissance, ni les saṃskāra, ni l’étude de la Śruti (les Veda), ni la lignée ne sont les causes du fait d’être “deux-fois-né”. La cause véritable n’est que la conduite.»
श्रीमहेश्वर उवाच
Educational Q&A
True ‘twice-born’ or Brahmin status is determined primarily by vṛtta (ethical conduct), not by birth (yoni), ritual sacraments (saṁskāra), Vedic learning (śruta), or lineage (santati).
In Anuśāsana Parva’s didactic setting, Śrī Maheśvara delivers a normative teaching on dharma, redefining social-spiritual qualification as a matter of character and behavior rather than inherited markers.