Shloka 19
त्रिवर्गमूलनिश्चयः — Determining the Roots of Dharma, Artha, and Kāma
Mahābhārata, Śānti-parva 123
तस्मिन्नन्तर्हिते चापि प्रजानां संकरो5भवत् | नैव कार्य न वाकार्य भोज्याभोज्यं न विद्यते,दण्ड लुप्त होते ही प्रजामें वर्णसंकरता फैलने लगी। कर्तव्याकर्तव्य तथा भक्ष्याभक्ष्यका विचार सर्वथा उठ गया
tasminn antarhite cāpi prajānāṁ saṅkaro 'bhavat | naiva kāryaṁ na vākāryaṁ bhojyābhojyaṁ na vidyate ||
ദണ്ഡം അപ്രത്യക്ഷമായതോടെ പ്രജകളിൽ കലക്കവും സംകരവും പടർന്നു. ചെയ്യേണ്ടത്–ചെയ്യരുതാത്തത്, ഭക്ഷ്യ–അഭക്ഷ്യ എന്ന വേർതിരിവ് തന്നെ ഇല്ലാതായി.
वसुहरोम उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches that daṇḍa—lawful restraint and punishment administered by rightful authority—is essential for sustaining dharma. When it disappears, people lose the ability (or willingness) to distinguish duty from non-duty and permissible from impermissible, leading to social and moral disorder (saṅkara).
Vasuharoma describes the consequences of the disappearance of daṇḍa (the governing principle of punishment/discipline). With that restraint gone, the populace falls into confusion: norms of conduct and dietary/prohibitive rules are no longer observed, and disorder spreads through society.