Shloka 12
Aśoka-śāstra: Nārada’s Instruction on the Cessation of Śoka
Grief
प्रकृतेविक्रियापत्ति: षण्मासान्मृत्युलक्षणम् | यदि मनुष्यकी बहुत बढ़ी-चढ़ी कान्ति भी अत्यन्त फीकी पड़ जाय, अधिक बुद्धिमत्ता भी बुद्धिहीनतामें परिणत हो जाय और स्वभावमें भी भारी उलट-फेर हो जाय तो यह उसके छ: महीनेके भीतर ही होनेवाली मृत्युका सूचक है ।।
yājñavalkya uvāca | prakṛte vikriyāpattiḥ ṣaṇmāsān mṛtyulakṣaṇam | daivatāny avajānāti brāhmaṇaiś ca virudhyate |
Yājñavalkya berkata: “Perubahan besar yang menyimpang dari watak alami adalah tanda kematian dalam enam bulan. Bila sinar diri yang dahulu cemerlang mendadak pudar, kecerdasan runtuh menjadi kebodohan, dan tabiat berbalik arah, ketahuilah maut telah dekat. Demikian pula, ketika seseorang mulai meremehkan para dewa dan memusuhi para brāhmaṇa, itu menandakan kemerosotan dharma dan akhir yang mendekat.”
याज्ञवल्क्य उवाच
Educational Q&A
Sudden, profound deterioration in character, clarity, and reverence—especially contempt for the divine and conflict with brāhmaṇas—is presented as both a moral fall and an ominous sign of imminent death; the teaching urges vigilance over one’s inner nature and dharmic conduct.
In Śānti Parva’s didactic setting, Yājñavalkya instructs about mṛtyu-lakṣaṇas (signs of approaching death), describing observable changes in a person’s disposition and behavior that indicate a near end and a collapse of dharmic orientation.