Shloka 31
Gṛhastha-vṛtti and Niyama: Models of Householder Livelihood and Discipline (गृहस्थवृत्ति-नियमाः)
अधर्म धर्मकामो हि करोति हाविचक्षण: । धर्म वाधर्मसंकाशं शोचन्निव करोति सः
adharma-dharma-kāmo hi karoti hāvicakṣaṇaḥ | dharma vādharmasaṅkāśaṃ śocann iva karoti saḥ ||
Vyāsa dit : L’homme sans discernement, tout en désirant le dharma, commet l’adharma ; et parfois, comme accablé de chagrin, il accomplit ce qui a l’apparence du dharma mais qui, en vérité, s’apparente à l’adharma. Faute de claire intelligence, il prend le tort pour le juste et, inversement, peut trébucher sur le juste tout en visant le tort. Une telle action confuse, mue par l’ignorance, enchaîne l’être incarné aux naissances et aux morts répétées.
व्यास उवाच
Educational Q&A
Without discernment (viveka), a person can commit adharma while believing it to be dharma, or perform dharma even while intending adharma. This confusion, rooted in ignorance, produces karmic bondage and perpetuates saṃsāra (repeated birth and death).
In the didactic setting of the Śānti Parva, Vyāsa is explaining how moral error often arises not only from deliberate wickedness but from misjudgment—mistaking the nature of an act. He highlights the ethical danger of acting with unclear understanding and the spiritual consequence of such ignorance-driven action.