Shloka 70
उपदेशदोषप्रसङ्गः (Upadeśa-doṣa-prasaṅgaḥ) — The Risk of Misapplied Counsel
तस्मान्मौनेन मुनयो दीक्षां कुर्वन्ति चादृता: । दुरुक्तस्य भयाद् राजन् नाभाषन्ते च किंचन
tasmān maunena munayo dīkṣāṃ kurvanti cādṛtāḥ | duruktasya bhayād rājan nābhāṣante ca kiṃcana ||
Oleh itu, wahai raja, para muni dengan penuh hormat menjalani ikrar mereka melalui kesunyian. Takut akan mudarat yang timbul daripada kata-kata yang tersalah ucap, mereka tidak berkata apa-apa sama sekali.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Speech can easily become harmful when it is ill-chosen or harsh; therefore sages adopt silence as a disciplined vow, treating restraint of speech as an ethical safeguard and a form of spiritual consecration.
Bhīṣma instructs the king on dharma, explaining why ascetics value mauna (silence): out of reverence for their discipline and fear of the consequences of wrong speech, they refrain from speaking.