Shloka 2
मांसपरिवर्जन-प्रशंसा (Praise of Abstention from Meat) / Ethics of Ahiṃsā in Diet and Rite
कृत्वा कर्माणि पापानि कथं यान्ति शुभां गतिम् । कर्मणा च कृतेनेह केन यान्ति शुभां गतिम्,मनुष्य पाप कर्म करके कैसे शुभगतिको प्राप्त होते हैं तथा किस कर्मके अनुष्ठानसे उन्हें उत्तम गति प्राप्त होती है?
Yudhiṣṭhira uvāca |
kṛtvā karmāṇi pāpāni kathaṃ yānti śubhāṃ gatim |
karmaṇā ca kṛtenehā kena yānti śubhāṃ gatim ||
Wika ni Yudhiṣṭhira: “Matapos makagawa ng mga kasalanang gawa, paano makakamit ng tao ang mabuting hantungan? At dito sa daigdig, sa pagsasagawa ng anong uri ng gawain maaari pa rin silang makarating sa pinagpalang kalagayan?”
युधिछ्िर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames a dharma-question about moral recovery: even after committing pāpa (sinful actions), what righteous practice or discipline can lead a person toward śubhā gati (an auspicious end). It sets up the doctrine that ethical transformation and prescribed remedies (such as repentance, charity, vows, devotion, truthfulness, and self-restraint—depending on the ensuing discourse) can redirect one’s karmic trajectory.
In the Anuśāsana Parva’s instruction-setting, Yudhiṣṭhira—concerned with the consequences of wrongdoing and the possibility of purification—asks an elder authority for guidance on how sinners may still attain a good destiny and what concrete actions in this life lead to that outcome.