Shloka 6

Draupadī’s Lament and Theodicy: Dharma, Dice, and Īśvara’s Governance (Āraṇyaka-parva 31)

Devanagari script

न धर्मफलमाप्रोति यो धर्म दोग्धुमिच्छति । यश्चैनं शड़कते कृत्वा नास्तिक्यात्‌ पापचेतन:,जो पापात्मा मनुष्य नास्तिकतावश धर्मका अनुष्ठान करके उसके विषयमें शंका करता है अथवा धर्मको दुहना चाहता है अर्थात्‌ धर्मके नामपर स्वार्थ सिद्ध करना चाहता है, उसे धर्मका फल बिलकुल नहीं मिलता

Transliteration

na dharmaphalam āpnoti yo dharmaṁ dogdhum icchati | yaś cainaṁ śaṅkate kṛtvā nāstikyāt pāpacetanaḥ ||

Translation

Yudhiṣṭhira said: “He who seeks to ‘milk’ dharma for personal gain does not obtain the fruit of dharma. And the one who, out of disbelief, performs dharma yet harbors doubt about it—being of sinful intent—likewise fails to receive its true reward.”

Word by Word

nanot

dharma-phalamfruit of dharma

āpnotiattains

yaḥwho

dharmamdharma

dogdhumto milk (exploit)

icchatidesires

yaḥand who

caand

enamthis (dharma)

śaṅkatedoubts

kṛtvāhaving done / having made

nāstikyātfrom atheism / due to disbelief

pāpa-cetanaḥevil-minded

Speaker

युधिछिर उवाच

Characters & Entities

Yudhiṣṭhira

dharma

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Geographic Context

Sandhi Notes