Shloka 2
Virūpākṣa’s Dāna and Gautama’s Burden — the approach of Rājadharma
कण्टकान् कूपमरग्निं च वर्जयन्ति यथा नरा: । तथा नृशंसकर्माणं वर्जयन्ति नरा नरम्
kaṇṭakān kūpam agniṃ ca varjayanti yathā narāḥ | tathā nṛśaṃsakarmāṇaṃ varjayanti narā naram ||
જેમ માણસો રસ્તામાં મળેલા કાંટા, કૂવો અને અગ્નિને ટાળી ચાલે છે, તેમ જ નૃશંસ કર્મ કરનાર પુરુષને પણ લોકો દૂરથી જ ત્યજી દે છે.
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
Cruel action makes a person socially and morally hazardous; just as one instinctively avoids physical dangers, society naturally avoids those known for merciless deeds. The verse highlights the reputational and ethical consequence of nṛśaṃsatā (cruelty): it isolates the doer and marks him as a danger to others.
In the Śānti Parva’s dharma-discourse, Yudhiṣṭhira speaks about moral conduct and its effects. Here he uses a simple road-side analogy—thorns, wells, and fire—to explain how people respond to a cruel person: they keep away, treating him like a peril to be avoided.