Shloka 21
Adhyāya 174: Karma as an inescapable companion (कर्मानुगमन-उपदेश)
कृतघ्नको कैसे यश प्राप्त हो सकता है? उसे कैसे स्थान और सुखकी उपलब्धि हो सकती है? कृतघ्न विश्वासके योग्य नहीं होता। कृतघ्नके उद्धारके लिये शास्त्रोंमें कोई प्रायश्चित्त नहीं बताया गया है ।।
bhīṣma uvāca |
kṛtaghnaḥ kathaṃ yaśaḥ prāptuṃ śaknoti? tasya kathaṃ sthāna-sukha-prāptiḥ syāt? kṛtaghnaḥ viśvāsa-yogyo na bhavati | kṛtaghnasyoddhārāya śāstreṣu na kaścit prāyaścitta-vidhir uktaḥ ||
mitradroho na kartavyaḥ puruṣeṇa viśeṣataḥ |
mitradhruḍḍho narakaṃ ghoraṃ anantaṃ pratipadyate ||
Bhīṣma berkata: “Bagaimana mungkin orang yang tak tahu berterima kasih memperoleh kemasyhuran? Bagaimana ia meraih kedudukan terhormat atau kebahagiaan? Orang semacam itu tak layak dipercaya, dan kitab-kitab suci tidak menetapkan penebusan yang dapat menebus ingratitude. Karena itu, seorang lelaki harus sangat berhati-hati agar tidak mengkhianati sahabat; sebab pengkhianat sahabat jatuh ke neraka yang mengerikan untuk waktu yang tiada berujung.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Gratitude and loyalty are foundational to dharma: ingratitude makes a person untrustworthy and morally irredeemable in the sense that no scriptural penance is said to fully cleanse it; betrayal of a friend is singled out as a grave wrong leading to severe, prolonged consequences.
In the Shanti Parva’s instruction on righteous conduct, Bhishma teaches Yudhishthira ethical principles after the war, warning against ingratitude and especially against treachery toward friends, framing these as socially destructive and spiritually ruinous.