Shloka 11
धन-राजधर्म संवादः
Discourse on Wealth and Royal Duty
आकिंचन्यं मुनीनां च इति वै नहुषो<ब्रवीत् । कृत्वा नृशंसं हाथने धिगस्त्वथचनतामिह
ākiñcanyaṁ munīnāṁ ca iti vai nahuṣo 'bravīt | kṛtvā nṛśaṁsaṁ hāthane dhig astv atha ca nṛtām iha ||
“Tidak memiliki apa-apa—itulah jalan para muni”: demikianlah, sesungguhnya, Nahuṣa pernah berkata. Namun setelah melakukan perbuatan kejam dalam hal pembunuhan, patutlah dikatakan: “Sungguh memalukan!”—dan memalukan pula bagi manusia di dunia ini yang bertindak demikian.
अर्जुन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse contrasts an ideal—ākiñcanya (non-possessiveness) associated with sages—with the moral ugliness of cruelty in killing. It implies that lofty teachings lose their force when contradicted by violent, pitiless conduct, and it censures such hypocrisy and brutality.
Arjuna cites (or recalls) a statement attributed to King Nahuṣa about the ascetic ideal of non-attachment, then immediately condemns the commission of a cruel act connected with killing, expressing moral revulsion (“dhik”) toward such behavior among people in the world.