Shloka 36

Devanagari script

पतितै: सम्प्रयोगाच्च ब्राह्णीयोनितस्तथा । अचिरेण महाराज पतितो वै भवत्युत,सुवर्णकी चोरी, अन्य वस्तुओंकी चोरी तथा ब्राह्मणका धन छीन लेना--यह महान्‌ पाप है। महाराज! मदिरापान और अगम्या स्त्रीके साथ गमन करनेसे, पतितोंके साथ सम्पर्क रखनेसे तथा ब्राह्मणेतर होकर ब्राह्मणीके साथ समागम करनेसे स्वेच्छाचारी पुरुष शीघ्र ही पतित हो जाता है

Transliteration

patitaiḥ samprayogāc ca brāhmaṇī-yonitas tathā | acireṇa mahārāja patito vai bhavaty uta ||

Translation

Bhishma berkata: “Wahai raja agung, dengan bergaul bersama mereka yang telah jatuh, dan demikian juga dengan bersetubuh dengan seorang Brāhmaṇī sedangkan dirinya berada di luar golongan Brāhmaṇa, seseorang dengan cepat menjadi ‘jatuh’—yakni tergelincir daripada ukuran-ukuran dharma.”

Word by Word

पतितैःby/with the fallen (degraded persons)

सम्प्रयोगात्from association/contact

चand

ब्राह्मणीa Brahmin woman

योनितःfrom (her) womb/lineage

तथाlikewise/also

अचिरेणin a short time/quickly

महाराजO great king

पतितःfallen/degraded

वैindeed

भवतिbecomes

उतalso/further

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

Bhīṣma

Mahārāja (Yudhiṣṭhira, addressed)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse warns that deliberate intimacy with morally fallen people and prohibited sexual conduct (especially crossing prescribed social-religious boundaries) quickly leads to one’s own fall from dharma—ethical decline is portrayed as contagious through company and action.

What is happening in the narrative?

In Śānti Parva, Bhīṣma instructs King Yudhiṣṭhira on dharma after the war. Here he lists behaviors that rapidly cause ‘patitatva’ (loss of moral/religious standing), emphasizing the consequences of corrupt association and transgressive sexuality.