Shloka 14
कपोती-विलापः स्वर्गसंयोगश्च
The Dove’s Lament and Celestial Reunion
ये नृशंसा दुरात्मान: प्राणिप्राणहरा नरा: । उद्बवेजनीया भूतानां व्याला इव भवन्ति ते
ye nṛśaṃsā durātmānaḥ prāṇiprāṇaharā narāḥ | udvejanīyā bhūtānāṃ vyālā iva bhavanti te ||
ビーシュマは言った。「残忍で心の邪なる者、命あるものの命を奪う者は、あらゆる生きとし生けるものから恐れられ、忌み嫌われる—毒蛇のごとく。教えはこうだ。残酷さから生じる暴力は人を道義の共同体から孤立させ、その生は敬われるのではなく、遍く恐れられる。」
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Cruelty and the taking of life make a person universally feared and shunned; ethical conduct (especially restraint from harming beings) is essential for social trust and moral standing.
In Śānti Parva, Bhīṣma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on dharma and right conduct. Here he characterizes violent, cruel men as comparable to serpents—creatures that all beings instinctively avoid—highlighting the social and moral consequences of such behavior.