Shloka 14
प्रलय-प्रक्रिया (Pralaya Process) — Guṇa-Withdrawal and Pratisaṃcara
यज्ञशील: सदा भूत्वा मामेव यजत स्वयम् । प्रोवाच लोकान् मूढात्मा कालेनोपनिपीडित:
yajñaśīlaḥ sadā bhūtvā mām eva yajata svayam | provāca lokān mūḍhātmā kālenopanipīḍitaḥ ||
ஒருகாலத்தில் எப்போதும் யாகநிஷ்டையுடன் இருந்தவன், பின்னர் காலத்தின் அழுத்தத்தால் நசுங்கி மயக்கமுற்ற மனத்துடன் மக்களிடம்—“என்னை மட்டுமே வழிபடுங்கள்” என்று நேரடியாக ஆணையிட்டான்.
शक्र उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even a person formerly committed to righteous sacrifice can fall into delusion and ego, demanding exclusive worship for himself. The verse cautions that true dharma requires humility and right orientation of worship; when pride and moha arise—intensified by the pressures of kāla—spiritual practice can be corrupted into self-exaltation.
Śakra (Indra) describes a figure who used to be consistently sacrificial (yajñaśīla), but later, afflicted by Time and deluded, publicly instructed people to worship him alone. The statement functions as a moral example within Śānti Parva’s reflective discourse on conduct and the causes of ethical decline.