Shloka 18
कालनियमः शोकशमनं च
Kāla as Regulator; Pacification of Grief
धनहेतोर्य ईहेत तस्यानीहा गरीयसी । भूयान् दोषो हि वित्तस्य यश्व धर्मस्तदाश्रय:
dhanahetor ya īheta tasyānīhā garīyasī | bhūyān doṣo hi vittasya yaś ca dharmas tadāśrayaḥ ||
Bagi orang yang berusaha dengan harta sebagai tujuan, lebih baik ia menahan diri dan tidak mengejar dengan gelisah. Sebab kekayaan membawa banyak cela, dan bahkan dharma yang bergantung pada harta pun ternoda oleh cela-cela itu.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Effort driven primarily by the desire for wealth is ethically risky; non-acquisitive restraint is preferable because wealth tends to bring moral defects, and even righteous acts funded by wealth can become compromised by attachment, pride, exploitation, or impurity of means.
In the didactic discourse of the Śānti Parva, Vaiśampāyana reports a teaching that evaluates wealth-seeking behavior, warning that the pursuit of riches and wealth-dependent religiosity can be morally blemished, and recommending restraint from such pursuit.