Shloka 17
Śuka’s Nirveda: Vyāsa’s Admonition on Dharma, Impermanence, and ‘Imperishable Wealth’ (अक्षय-धन)
लीलयाल्पं यथा गात्रात् प्रमृज्यात् तु रज: पुमान् | बहुयत्नेन च महत् पापनिर्हरणं तथा
līlayā alpaṁ yathā gātrāt pramṛjyāt tu rajaḥ pumān | bahu-yatnena ca mahat pāpa-nirharaṇaṁ tathā ||
Bhīṣma dit : «De même qu’un homme peut, sans peine, essuyer un peu de poussière sur son corps, mais doit fournir un grand effort pour ôter une saleté épaisse, de même une faute légère s’efface par un effort léger, tandis qu’une grande faute ne se dissipe que par une grande expiation.»
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Moral purification should be proportionate: minor wrongdoing can be corrected with modest effort, but grave wrongdoing requires sustained, serious expiation and reform—like light dust versus deep grime on the body.
In the Śānti Parva’s instruction on dharma, Bhīṣma teaches Yudhiṣṭhira through a practical simile, explaining how sins are removed according to their magnitude and the corresponding intensity of prāyaścitta.