Shloka 21
मोक्षोपाय-निर्णयः
Determination of the Means to Liberation
नैव दस्युर्मनुष्याणां न देवानामिति श्रुति: । न गन्धर्वपितृणां च कः कस्येह न कश्नन
naiva dasyur manuṣyāṇāṁ na devānām iti śrutiḥ | na gandharva-pitṝṇāṁ ca kaḥ kasyeha na kaścana ||
Humatsena dit : «La tradition scripturaire déclare qu’un brigand n’appartient à personne — ni aux hommes, ni aux dieux, ni même aux Gandharvas ou aux Pitṛs. En ce monde, nul ne peut vraiment dire : “Ce voleur est à moi” ; un voleur, en vérité, n’est à personne.»
हुमत्सेन उवाच
Educational Q&A
A life of plunder severs genuine social and moral belonging: a robber cannot be claimed as ‘one of ours’ by any community—human, divine, or ancestral. The verse underscores that wrongdoing isolates the doer from rightful affiliation and protection.
Humat-sena is stating a general dharma-principle in the didactic setting of the Śānti Parva: he cites ‘śruti’ (authoritative tradition) to argue that a bandit has no legitimate claimant or protector, framing the ethical status of criminals as outside normal bonds of kinship and allegiance.