Mahabharata — Anushasana Parva, Shloka 29
Kīṭopākhyāna: Prajā-pālana as Kṣatra-vrata and the Attainment of Brāhmaṇya
अहिंसा परम धर्म है, अहिंसा परम संयम है, अहिंसा परम दान है और अहिंसा परम तपस्या है ।।
ahiṃsā paramo dharmaḥ, ahiṃsā paramaḥ saṃyamaḥ, ahiṃsā paramaṃ dānam, ahiṃsā paramā tapasyā. ahiṃsā paramo yajñas tathāhiṃsā paraṃ phalam | ahiṃsā paramaṃ mitram ahiṃsā paramaṃ sukham ||
Ipinahayag ni Bhīṣma: Ang ahiṃsā ang pinakamataas na dharma at ang sukdulang pagsupil sa sarili. Ito ang pinakadakilang kaloob at ang pinakamataas na tapas. Ang ahiṃsā ang pangunahing yajña (handog-sakripisyo) at siya ring pinakadakilang bunga; ang ahiṃsā ang pinakamabuting kaibigan at ang pinakamataas na ligaya.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Ahiṃsā (non-violence) is presented as the supreme value that encompasses and surpasses other virtues: it is the highest dharma, the deepest self-restraint, the greatest charity, the truest austerity, the best sacrifice, and the surest source of reward, friendship, and happiness.
In the Anuśāsana Parva, Bhīṣma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on dharma from his bed of arrows. Here he emphasizes a foundational ethical principle—ahiṃsā—as the guiding standard for righteous conduct and spiritual merit.