Mahabharata — Anushasana Parva, Shloka 123
Ahiṃsā as Threefold Restraint (Mind–Speech–Action) and the Ethics of Consumption
मत्स्यमांसमथो हृत्वा काको जायति दुर्मति: । लवणं चोरयित्वा तु चिरिकाक: प्रजायते
matsyamāṁsam atho hṛtvā kāko jāyati durmatiḥ | lavaṇaṁ corayitvā tu cirikākaḥ prajāyate |
Sinabi ni Yudhiṣṭhira: “Ang taong baluktot ang pag-unawa na nagnanakaw ng isda at karne ay muling isisilang bilang uwak. Ngunit ang nagnanakaw ng asin ay muling isisilang bilang cirikāka (isang tiyak na uri ng ibon).” Ipinapakita ng taludtod na ito na kahit ang pagnanakaw na wari’y maliit ay may bungang-karmiko, at hinuhubog ang susunod na kapanganakan ayon sa likas ng nagawang kasalanan.
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches asteya (non-stealing) and the doctrine of karmic retribution: specific forms of theft lead to specific adverse rebirths, emphasizing that no act of dishonesty is morally trivial.
In Anuśāsana Parva’s dharma-instruction context, Yudhiṣṭhira cites a rule-like statement about karmic outcomes: stealing fish/meat results in rebirth as a crow, while stealing salt results in rebirth as a cirikāka bird.