Shloka 14
द्वावेतौ ग्रसते भूमि: सर्पों बिलशयानिव । राजानं चाविरोद्धारं ब्राह्मणं चाप्रवासिनम्,जैसे सर्प बिलमें रहनेवाले चूहों आदिको निगल जाता है, उसी प्रकार यह भूमि विरोध न करनेवाले राजा तथा परदेशमें न विचरनेवाले ब्राह्मण (संन्यासी)-को ग्रस लेती है
dvāv etau grasate bhūmiḥ sarpōn bilaśayān iva | rājānaṃ cāvirōddhāraṃ brāhmaṇaṃ cāpravāsinam ||
Bumi menelan dua golongan ini—sebagaimana ular menelan makhluk yang tinggal di liang: raja yang tidak melawan untuk menegakkan dan melindungi tatanan dharma, dan brāhmaṇa yang tidak berangkat meninggalkan rumah untuk menjalani laku pengembaraan/pelepasan diri yang tertib.
दुर्योधन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Neglect of svadharma leads to downfall: a king must actively uphold order and restrain wrongdoing, while a brāhmaṇa is expected to pursue disciplined spiritual life (often idealized as going forth/wandering rather than remaining complacently settled).
In the Sabha Parva context, Duryodhana is speaking in a political-moral register, using a proverb-like image to argue that passivity in rulership and complacency in spiritual vocation are self-destructive, as if the very earth consumes such persons.