Shloka 7
Varṇasaṃkara: Causes, Classifications, and Conduct-based Recognition (वर्णसंकरः—हेतु-जाति-आचारनिर्णयः)
असदाचरिते मार्गे कथं स्यादनुकीर्तनम् । अत्र प्रश्न: संशयो वा सतामेवमुपालभेत्
Bhīṣma uvāca: asad-ācarite mārge kathaṃ syād anukīrtanam | atra praśnaḥ saṃśayo vā satām evam upālabhet |
Bagaimana mungkin kitab suci membenarkan atau memuji jalan yang ditandai oleh perilaku tak patut? Dan dalam perkara seperti ini, bagaimana mungkin di hadapan orang saleh diajukan pertanyaan, keraguan, atau bahkan celaan dengan cara demikian?
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhishma emphasizes that śāstra (authoritative teaching) cannot be used to legitimize a path grounded in misconduct; ethical tradition (sadācāra) and the judgment of the righteous set limits on what can be defended as dharma.
In his instruction on dharma, Bhishma anticipates or answers an objection: if a certain course is plainly rooted in bad conduct, it cannot be presented as scripturally approved, nor should one press the righteous with doubts or reproaches that attempt to normalize such wrongdoing.