Shloka 40
भृगु–भरद्वाजसंवादः: वर्णभेदस्य कर्माधारितव्याख्या
Bhrigu–Bharadvaja Dialogue: A Karma-Based Account of Varṇa
यदि ब्राह्मण देहस्ते निरातड़को निरामय: । अड्जरननि च समग्राणि न च लोकेषु धिक्कृत:
yadi brāhmaṇa dehas te nirātaṅko nirāmayaḥ | aṅgāni ca samagrāṇi na ca lokeṣu dhikkṛtaḥ ||
Wika ni Bhishma: “O brāhmaṇa, kung ang iyong katawan ay malaya sa takot at karamdaman—kung ang lahat ng iyong mga sangkap ay maayos at walang kapinsalaang lumitaw—kung gayon, walang sinuman sa daigdig ang makapaghahatol sa iyo nang makatarungan. Hindi ka karapat-dapat pag-ukulan ng panunumbat.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhīṣma links moral/social blame to demonstrable fault: if a person is untroubled, healthy, and unimpaired—i.e., not showing signs of wrongdoing or disorder—then public condemnation lacks basis. The verse emphasizes restraint in reproach and the idea that censure should be grounded in clear cause.
In Śānti Parva’s instruction, Bhīṣma addresses a brāhmaṇa and reassures him: if he is physically and outwardly unimpaired and not marked by any defect, society cannot legitimately treat him as blameworthy. The statement functions as counsel about reputation, judgment, and the conditions under which reproach is warranted.