Mahabharata — Anushasana Parva, Shloka 126
Ahiṃsā as Threefold Restraint (Mind–Speech–Action) and the Ethics of Consumption
पापानि तु नरा: कृत्वा तिर्यग् जायन्ति भारत । न चात्मन: प्रमाणं ते धर्म जानन्ति किंचन
pāpāni tu narāḥ kṛtvā tiryag jāyanti bhārata | na cātmanaḥ pramāṇaṃ te dharma jānanti kiṃcana, bhārata ||
Sinabi ni Yudhiṣṭhira: “O Bhārata, matapos gumawa ng mga kasalanan, ang mga tao’y isinisilang sa mababang uri (mga hayop at ibon). Doon, wala na silang maaasahang paggabay sa sarili o malinaw na pag-unawa, at wala silang nalalaman tungkol sa dharma—ang daan ng sariling pag-angat.”
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
Sinful actions can lead to rebirth in lower forms of life, where the capacity for moral discernment and conscious pursuit of dharma is greatly diminished; therefore one should avoid pāpa and cultivate dharma while human.
In the Anuśāsana Parva’s instruction on dharma, Yudhiṣṭhira articulates a moral consequence of wrongdoing: those who commit sins may fall into animal birth, a state in which they lack the reflective knowledge and guidance needed for self-uplift through dharma.