Mahabharata — Anushasana Parva, Shloka 15
Gautama–Śakra Saṃvāda: Karma, Loka-bheda, and the Restoration of the Elephant
धृतराष्ट उवाच ये निष्क्रिया नास्तिकाश्रद्दधाना: पापात्मान इन्द्रियार्थे निविष्टा: यमस्य ते याततनां प्राप्तुवन्ति परं गन्ता धृतराष्ट्रो न तत्र
dhṛtarāṣṭra uvāca | ye niṣkriyā nāstikāśraddadhānāḥ pāpātmāna indriyārthe niviṣṭāḥ | yamasya te yātanāṁ prāptuvanti paraṁ gantā dhṛtarāṣṭro na tatra |
ਧ੍ਰਿਤਰਾਸ਼ਟਰ ਨੇ ਆਖਿਆ—ਜੋ ਧਰਮ-ਕਰਤਵ ਵਿੱਚ ਨਿਸ਼ਕ੍ਰਿਆ, ਨਾਸਤਿਕ, ਸ਼ਰਧਾਹੀਣ, ਪਾਪਬੁੱਧੀ ਅਤੇ ਇੰਦ੍ਰੀ ਵਿਸ਼ਿਆਂ ਵਿੱਚ ਲੀਨ ਹਨ, ਉਹੀ ਯਮ ਦੀਆਂ ਯਾਤਨਾਵਾਂ ਭੋਗਦੇ ਹਨ; ਪਰ ਰਾਜਾ ਧ੍ਰਿਤਰਾਸ਼ਟਰ ਉੱਥੇ ਜਾਣ ਵਾਲਾ ਨਹੀਂ।
धृतराष्ट उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse links moral downfall to specific traits—neglect of rightful action, disbelief, lack of faith, sinful intent, and attachment to sense-objects—and states that such dispositions lead to punitive consequences after death under Yama’s judgment.
Dhṛtarāṣṭra speaks about who becomes subject to Yama’s torments, characterizing the condemned as irreligious and sense-enslaved; he then asserts that he himself (as king Dhṛtarāṣṭra) is not among those destined for that fate.