Shloka 26
Jñāna-yoga and Karma-phala: Manu–Bṛhaspati on Akṣara and the Limits of Mantra
ह्ृदयं पापवृत्तानां पापमाख्याति वैकृतम् । ज्ञानपूर्व विनश्यन्ति गूहमाना महाजने
hṛdayaṃ pāpavṛttānāṃ pāpam ākhyāti vaikṛtam | jñānapūrvaṃ vinaśyanti gūhamānā mahājane ||
Bhīṣma dit : Le cœur même de ceux qui vivent dans le péché — ainsi que les altérations visibles de leur état — trahit leur forfait. Ceux qui commettent sciemment le péché et cherchent ensuite à le dissimuler aux grands et aux hommes de bien sont voués à la ruine.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Sin is not easily hidden: a person’s inner disposition and outward distortions in behavior or condition tend to reveal wrongdoing. Deliberate sin compounded by concealment—especially from the wise and virtuous—leads to downfall.
In the Śānti Parva’s instruction on dharma and conduct, Bhīṣma advises about moral causality: he warns that the sinful are exposed by their own inner state and that knowingly hiding sin from respected elders or the righteous results in ruin.