Shloka 18
त्रिवर्गमूलनिश्चयः — Determining the Roots of Dharma, Artha, and Kāma
Mahābhārata, Śānti-parva 123
तस्मिन प्रवृत्ते सत्रे तु ब्रह्मण: पार्थिवर्षभ । दृष्टरूपप्रधानत्वाद् दण्ड: सो<न्तर्हितो$भवत्
tasmin pravṛtte satre tu brahmaṇaḥ pārthivarṣabha | dṛṣṭarūpapradhānatvād daṇḍaḥ so 'ntarhito 'bhavat ||
Vasuharoma berkata: “Wahai banteng di antara para raja, ketika sidang kurban (satra) yang digerakkan oleh Brahmā itu mulai berlangsung, tongkat (daṇḍa) Brahmā lenyap. Sebab, ketika kurban menjadi terutama dituntun oleh hal-hal yang tampak dan nyata, lambang kewibawaan penghukuman itu tak lagi terlihat.”
वसुहरोम उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse uses the disappearance of Brahmā’s daṇḍa (rod of punishment/authority) to suggest that when a sacred undertaking is governed by manifest, properly ordered ritual action, coercive enforcement recedes; visible, disciplined performance itself sustains order.
As Brahmā’s satra begins, the narrative notes a symbolic change: Brahmā’s staff vanishes, explained as a result of the sacrifice’s predominance of directly visible, manifest ritual form and procedure.