Shloka 25
अध्याय २९७ — श्रेयः, धृति, दान-नियमाः
Welfare, Steadfastness, and Norms of Giving
विषमुद्बन्धनं दाहो दस्युहस्तात् तथा वध: । देष्टिभ्यश्न पशुभ्यश्ष प्राकृतो वध उच्यते
viṣam udbandhanaṁ dāho dasyu-hastāt tathā vadhaḥ | dṛṣṭibhyasna-paśubhyas ca prākṛto vadha ucyate ||
پراشر نے کہا—زہر کھا لینے سے، پھانسی سے، آگ میں جل کر، ڈاکوؤں کے ہاتھوں قتل ہو کر، اور نوکیلے دانتوں والے درندوں کے حملے سے جو موت آتی ہے، اسے ‘پراکرت’ یعنی ادنیٰ درجے کی ہلاکت کہا جاتا ہے۔
पराशर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse classifies certain modes of dying—poison, hanging, burning, being killed by robbers, or by beasts—as ‘prākṛta’ (ordinary/base), implying an ethical valuation of ends: some deaths are regarded as ignoble compared to deaths aligned with dharma and self-mastery.
Parāśara is instructing about types of death (vadhāḥ) and their moral/qualitative status, listing specific violent or self-destructive ends and labeling them as a lower category.