Shloka 57

Devanagari script

यदि पुत्रसमं शिष्य॑ गुरुहन्यादकारणे । आत्मन: कामकारेण सोऊपि हिंस्र: प्रजायते

Transliteration

yadi putrasamaṁ śiṣyaṁ gurur hanyād akāraṇe | ātmanaḥ kāmakāreṇa so 'pi hiṁsraḥ prajāyate ||

Translation

Yudhiṣṭhira berkata: Jika seorang guru, didorong oleh kehendak dan nafsunya sendiri, membunuh seorang murid yang laksana anak, tanpa sebab yang adil, maka guru itu juga menjadi insan yang ganas. Kekuasaan tidak mensucikan kekejaman: bahkan seorang guru menanggung cela moral apabila bertindak menurut dorongan diri, bukan menurut dharma.

Word by Word

यदिif

पुत्रसमम्equal to a son

शिष्यम्disciple

गुरुःteacher

हन्यात्should kill / were to kill

अकारणेwithout cause; in the absence of a reason

आत्मनःof oneself

कामकारेणby acting according to desire; by whim

सःhe

अपिalso; even

हिंस्रःviolent; harmful

प्रजायतेis born; becomes

Speaker

युधिछिर उवाच

Characters & Entities

Yudhiṣṭhira

guru

śiṣya

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Even a guru is not above dharma: killing a disciple without just cause, out of personal desire or whim, makes the teacher culpable and morally ‘violent’. Legitimate authority cannot excuse adharma.

What is happening in the narrative?

Yudhiṣṭhira is articulating an ethical principle within the Anuśāsana Parva’s instruction on right conduct: he frames a conditional case about a guru harming a disciple to clarify that unjustified violence—especially by one entrusted with care—corrupts the doer.