Shloka 17
जपयोगयोः तुल्यफलनिर्णयः
Adhyāya 193: Adjudication of the Comparable Fruits of Japa and Yoga
सोपध॑ निकृतिः स्तेयं परीवादो हासूयिता । परोपघातो हिंसा च पैशुन्यमनृतं तथा
bharadvāja uvāca | sopadhaḥ nikṛtiḥ steyaṁ parīvādo hāsūyitā | paropaghāto hiṁsā ca paiśunyam anṛtaṁ tathā ||
सोपधं निकृतिः स्तेयं परीवादो हासूयिता । परोपघातो हिंसा च पैशुन्यमनृतं तथा ॥
भरद्वाज उवाच
Educational Q&A
Austerity (tapas) is not merely ritual effort; it is sustained by ethical purity. Deceit, theft, slander, spite, harming others, violence, gossip, and lying erode spiritual power, while consistent avoidance of these faults makes tapas grow.
In Śānti Parva’s instruction on dharma and conduct, the sage Bharadvāja enumerates specific moral faults and explains their direct consequence: they diminish one’s tapas, whereas the wise who refrain from them continually strengthen their austerity.