Shloka 41
Adhyaya 3 — The Dharmapakshis’ Past-Life Curse and Indra’s Test of Truthfulness
तस्मान्नैतत् करिष्यामो नीचीर्णं यत् पुरातनैः ।
जीवन् भद्राण्यवाप्नोति जीवन् पुण्यं करोति च ॥
tasmān naitat kariṣyāmo nīcīrṇaṃ yat purātanaiḥ /
jīvan bhadrāṇy avāpnoti jīvan puṇyaṃ karoti ca
“Vì thế, chúng ta sẽ không làm điều ấy—điều hèn kém và không được người xưa thực hành. Khi còn sống, người ta đạt được phúc lành; khi còn sống, người ta cũng tạo công đức.”
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FAQs
The verse affirms sadācāra—right conduct grounded in the example of the virtuous ancients. It rejects “nīcīrṇa” (ignoble behavior) and teaches that dharma is not merely for posthumous reward: living ethically brings immediate welfare (bhadra) and simultaneously generates puṇya (merit).
This verse is primarily dharma-śikṣā (ethical instruction) rather than a direct pancalakṣaṇa element. It aligns most closely as ancillary teaching within a Purāṇic narrative frame, not specifically sarga (creation), pratisarga, vaṃśa (genealogies), manvantara, or vaṃśānucarita (dynastic accounts).
On an inner level, “jīvan” is emphasized twice to point to embodied practice: spiritual progress is validated through lived discipline, not abstract belief. The appeal to “purātanaiḥ” suggests alignment with a perennial dharmic current—conduct that harmonizes the individual with ṛta/dharma yields both visible well-being (bhadra) and subtle accrual of merit (puṇya).