Shloka 7
Adhyāya 272: Vṛtrasya Dharmiṣṭhatā, Indrasya Mohaḥ, Vasiṣṭha-upadeśaḥ
Vṛtra’s dharmic stature; Indra’s disorientation; Vasiṣṭha’s counsel
व्याजेन चरते धर्ममर्थ व्याजेन रोचते । व्याजेन सिद्धयमानेषु धनेषु कुरुनन्दन
bhīṣma uvāca | vyājena carate dharmam arthaṁ vyājena rocate | vyājena siddhyamāneṣu dhaneṣu kurunandana, uttaraṁ nyāyasambaddhaṁ bravīti vidhicoditam ||
Bhishma berkata: “Seseorang itu mengamalkan dharma hanya dengan berselindung di sebalik alasan kebajikan; dia mengejar harta melalui helah dan tipu daya. Dan apabila keuntungan yang diperoleh secara menipu itu berhasil, wahai kebanggaan kaum Kuru, dia menumpukan seluruh akalnya pada jalan itu juga. Kemudian, sekalipun sahabat yang bijaksana dan para cendekia menahannya, wahai keturunan Bharata, dia tetap hanya ingin berbuat dosa—lalu menjawab orang yang melarangnya dengan hujah yang kedengaran ‘adil’ dan ‘menurut aturan’, disusun licik daripada bahasa kitab-kitab suci.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhishma warns that once a person normalizes deceit for gain, he begins to disguise adharma as dharma: he clings to successful wrongdoing, rejects sincere counsel, and even weaponizes scriptural language to make his actions appear justified.
In the Shanti Parva’s instruction to Yudhiṣṭhira, Bhishma analyzes a moral failure-pattern: a man starts with ‘pretexts’ for righteousness, shifts to deceitful pursuit of wealth, becomes mentally invested in that success, and then answers reprovers with seemingly lawful, reasoned replies drawn from injunctions.