Ahiṃsā as Threefold Restraint (Mind–Speech–Action) and the Ethics of Consumption
कृतघ्नस्तु मृतो राजन् यमस्य विषयं गत: । यमस्य पुरुषै: क्रुद्धैर्वधं प्राप्नोति दारुणम्
kṛtaghnas tu mṛto rājan yamasya viṣayaṃ gataḥ | yamasya puruṣaiḥ kruddhair vadhaṃ prāpnoti dāruṇam ||
कृतघ्नस्तु मृतो राजन् यमस्य विषयं गतः । यमस्य पुरुषैः क्रुद्धैर्वधं प्राप्नोति दारुणम् ॥
युधिछिर उवाच
The verse teaches that kṛtaghnatā (ingratitude) is a serious adharma. Failing to acknowledge and repay benefaction violates moral order and leads to severe retribution, symbolized by punishment in Yama’s realm.
Yudhiṣṭhira addresses the king and describes the post-mortem fate of an ungrateful person: after death he enters Yama’s jurisdiction, where Yama’s angry attendants administer a dreadful punishment, serving as a deterrent and moral instruction.