Shloka 48
Adhyāya 287 — Janaka’s Inquiry on Śreyas, Abhayadāna, and Asaṅga
Non-attachment
येन खट्वां समारूढ: कर्मणानुशयी भवेत् | आदितस्तन्न कर्तव्यमिच्छता भवमात्मन:
yena khaṭvāṃ samārūḍhaḥ karmaṇānuśayī bhavet | āditas tan na kartavyam icchatā bhavam ātmanaḥ ||
ఏ కర్మ వల్ల మనిషి చివరికి ఖట్వాపై పడిపోయి కూడా కర్మానుశయంతో బంధింపబడతాడో, తన శ్రేయస్సు కోరువాడు ఆ కర్మను మొదటినుంచే చేయకూడదు.
नारद उवाच
Educational Q&A
Choose actions from the outset that do not leave a lingering karmic residue; a person seeking true self-welfare should avoid deeds that will bind the mind with regret, attachment, or unresolved consequences at life’s end.
In Śānti Parva’s didactic setting, Nārada delivers counsel on right conduct: he warns that actions leading to bondage and ‘deathbed helplessness’ with karmic remainder should be rejected at the very beginning by one intent on genuine good.