Shloka 93
Dama-pradhāna-dharma (Self-restraint as the Root of Dharma) — Śānti-parva 154
भीष्म उवाच तथा धर्मविरोधेन प्रियमिथ्याभिधायिना । श्मशानवासिना नित्यं रात्रि मृगयता नूप
bhīṣma uvāca tathā dharmavirodhena priyamithyābhidhāyinā | śmaśānavāsinā nityaṁ rātri mṛgayatā nṛpa ||
Bhishma dit : «Ô roi, cette créature—qui demeurait sans cesse au lieu de crémation—attendait la nuit afin d’accomplir son dessein. Aussi, par des paroles plaisantes mais mensongères, contraires au dharma, elle tint les proches du garçon en suspens, dans le doute et le retard. Ils ne pouvaient ni avancer ni demeurer en paix ; à la fin, ils furent contraints de rester.»
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Speech that is pleasant but false—and especially speech opposed to dharma—can become a tool of harm. The verse warns that flattering deception can paralyze right action by creating hesitation and confusion, so ethical speech must be aligned with dharma, not merely with what sounds agreeable.
Bhishma describes a deceitful being (in the surrounding story, a jackal-like figure) who lives near the cremation-ground and waits for night to further its scheme. By uttering sweet-sounding lies contrary to dharma, it causes the boy’s relatives to become stuck—unable to decide whether to proceed or withdraw—until they end up remaining there.