Mahabharata — Anushasana Parva, Shloka 92
Ahiṃsā as Threefold Restraint (Mind–Speech–Action) and the Ethics of Consumption
कृतघ्नस्तु मृतो राजन् यमस्य विषयं गत: । यमस्य पुरुषै: क्रुद्धैर्वधं प्राप्नोति दारुणम्
kṛtaghnas tu mṛto rājan yamasya viṣayaṃ gataḥ | yamasya puruṣaiḥ kruddhair vadhaṃ prāpnoti dāruṇam ||
O Hari, ang taong walang utang-na-loob, pagkapanaog sa kamatayan, ay napapasa-kaharian ni Yama. Doon, ang nagngangalit na mga tagapaglingkod ni Yama ay nagpapataw sa kanya ng mabagsik at kakila-kilabot na parusa.
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches that kṛtaghnatā (ingratitude) is a serious adharma. Failing to acknowledge and repay benefaction violates moral order and leads to severe retribution, symbolized by punishment in Yama’s realm.
Yudhiṣṭhira addresses the king and describes the post-mortem fate of an ungrateful person: after death he enters Yama’s jurisdiction, where Yama’s angry attendants administer a dreadful punishment, serving as a deterrent and moral instruction.