Shloka 8
Strī-satkāra (On honoring women) — Mahābhārata 13.46
तथैव हि भवेयुस्ते लोका: पापकृतो यथा । कृत्वा नाचक्षत: कर्म मम तच्च यथाकृतम्
tathaiva hi bhaveyus te lokāḥ pāpakṛto yathā | kṛtvā nācakṣataḥ karma mama tac ca yathākṛtam |
Vipula berkata: “Maka sungguh, engkau pun dapat memperoleh dunia-dunia yang menjadi bagian para pelaku dosa. Sebab perbuatan yang kau lakukan—meski dalam rangka melindungi istriku—kau lakukan namun tidak kau ungkapkan kepadaku; karena itu engkau bisa saja ditakdirkan menuju alam yang sama dengan mereka yang berbuat jahat.”
विपुल उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even when an act is performed under a seemingly protective motive, concealment and lack of accountability can taint it ethically; actions and their intentions must be aligned with truthfulness, or one risks the moral consequences associated with wrongdoing.
Vipula rebukes someone for having committed a questionable act while protecting Vipula’s wife and then hiding it from him; he declares that such concealment makes the person liable to the same post-mortem fate as sinners.