Shloka 583
Adhyāya 166: Kṛtaghna-doṣa (कृतघ्नदोषः) — the fault of ingratitude and the limits of expiation
उक्त: पशुसमो दोषो राजन् प्राणिनिपातनात् । कुत्ते, सूअर और गदहोंकी हत्या करके मनुष्य शूद्रवध-सम्बधी व्रतका ही आचरण करे। राजन! बिल्ली, नीलकण्ठ, मेढक, कौआ, साँप और चूहा आदि प्राणियोंको मारनेसे भी उक्त पशुवधके ही समान पाप बताया गया है
bhīṣma uvāca | uktaḥ paśusamo doṣo rājan prāṇinipātanāt | kutte sūkara-gardabhān hatvā manuṣyaḥ śūdravadha-sambandhi-vratasyaiva ācaraṇaṃ kuryāt | rājan! mārjāra-nīlakaṇṭha-maṇḍūka-kāka-sarpa-mūṣakādi-prāṇināṃ vadhenāpi ukta-paśuvadha-samo doṣaḥ proktaḥ |
Bhishma berkata: Wahai Raja, telah dinyatakan bahwa kesalahan karena merenggut nyawa makhluk hidup sebanding dengan dosa penyembelihan hewan. Jika seseorang membunuh anjing, babi, atau keledai, ia harus menjalankan laku penebusan yang ditetapkan bagi pembunuhan seorang Śūdra. Wahai Raja, bahkan membunuh makhluk seperti kucing, burung nilakaṇṭha, katak, gagak, ular, atau tikus pun dikatakan menimbulkan dosa yang sama dengan pembunuhan hewan tersebut.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The passage teaches that taking life (prāṇinipātana) carries serious moral fault, and that killing even commonly disregarded animals is treated as a grave ethical transgression, requiring expiatory discipline; it reinforces restraint and non-violence as part of dharma.
In the Śānti Parva, Bhishma instructs King Yudhishthira on dharma after the war. Here he explains the demerit attached to killing various creatures and links such acts to prescribed expiations, framing the king’s governance and personal conduct around ethical accountability.