Shloka 27
मृत्यु-काल-प्रबोधनम् (Instruction on Mortality, Time, and Truth) — Mahābhārata, Śānti-parva 169
तेषामप्यधमा राजन् कृतघ्ना मित्रघातका: । त्यक्तव्यास्तु दुराचारा: सर्वेषामिति निश्चय:
teṣām apy adhamā rājan kṛtaghnā mitraghātakāḥ | tyaktavyās tu durācārāḥ sarveṣām iti niścayaḥ ||
Bhishma berkata: “Wahai Raja, bahkan di antara orang-orang tercela itu, yang paling hina ialah mereka yang tidak tahu berterima kasih—para pembunuh sahabat. Orang-orang jahat yang berperilaku buruk demikian harus ditinggalkan dari jauh; inilah keyakinan yang telah mantap bagi semua.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Ingratitude is portrayed as the basest vice because it destroys trust and can lead even to betrayal and violence against friends; therefore, such incorrigibly immoral people should be avoided and renounced.
In the Śānti Parva’s instruction on dharma, Bhīṣma advises the king on recognizing harmful character types, declaring the ungrateful—capable of harming friends—as the worst and recommending that they be kept at a distance and abandoned.