Shloka 18
Dama-pradhāna-dharma (Self-restraint as the Root of Dharma) — Śānti-parva 154
ध्वांक्षपक्षसवर्णस्तु बिलान्नि:सृत्य जम्बुक:ः । गच्छमानान् सम तानाह निर्घणा: खलु मानुषा:
dhvāṅkṣa-pakṣa-savarṇas tu bilān niḥsṛtya jambukaḥ | gacchamānān sa tān āha nirghṛṇāḥ khalu mānuṣāḥ ||
Wika ni Bhishma: Noon, isang asong-gubat na maitim na gaya ng pakpak ng uwak ang lumabas mula sa lungga at tinawag ang mga kamag-anak na papaalis: “Kayong mga tao, tunay ngang walang habag!”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames a moral rebuke: cruelty and lack of compassion are condemned as a human failing. By putting the accusation in the mouth of a jackal, the narrative sharpens the ethical contrast—humans, who should uphold dharma, are portrayed as acting more pitilessly than animals.
A crow-dark jackal emerges from its den and calls out to a group of people (described as kinsmen) who are leaving. It directly criticizes them, declaring that humans are merciless—setting up or continuing a didactic episode in Bhishma’s discourse.