Shloka 9
Sāma (Sāntva) and Dāna: The Brāhmaṇa’s Conciliatory Release from a Rākṣasa
अन्ध॑ स्यात् तम एवेदं न प्रज्ञायेत किंचन । चातुर्वर्ण्य न वर्तेत धर्माधमावृतानृते
andhaḥ syāt tam evedaṁ na prajñāyet kiñcana | cāturvarṇyaṁ na varteta dharmādharmāvṛtānṛte ||
Maitreya disse: “Sem os brâmanes, este mundo inteiro ficaria cego—coberto pela escuridão da ignorância. Ninguém discerniria coisa alguma; e a ordem social das quatro varṇas não funcionaria—do mesmo modo, as próprias distinções entre dharma e adharma, e entre verdade e falsidade, seriam obscurecidas e perdidas.”
मैत्रेय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse asserts that learned custodians of sacred knowledge and ethical instruction (here, Brahmins) are essential for preserving discernment (prajñā), sustaining the functioning of cāturvarṇya as an ordered society, and keeping clear moral and epistemic distinctions—dharma vs. adharma and truth vs. falsehood.
Maitreya is speaking within Anuśāsana Parva’s didactic setting, emphasizing the societal and moral consequences of the absence of Brahmins: ignorance spreads, social roles collapse, and moral categories become obscured.