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Shloka 60

कर्णनिधनवृत्तान्तनिवेदनम् | Reporting Karṇa’s Fall to Yudhiṣṭhira

जो लोग अन्यायपूर्वक दूसरोंके धन आदिका अपहरण कर लेना चाहते हैं, वे कभी अपने स्वार्थकी सिद्धिके लिये दूसरोंसे सत्यभाषणरूप धर्मका पालन कराना चाहते हों तो वहाँ उनके समक्ष मौन रहकर उनसे पिण्ड छुड़ानेकी चेष्टा करे, किसी तरह कुछ बोले ही नहीं ।।

avaśyaṃ kūjitabye vā śaṅkerann appakūjataḥ | śreyas tatrānṛtaṃ vaktuṃ tat satyam avicāritam ||

风神(Vāyu-deva)说道:若不得不说话,或若沉默会使盗贼起疑,那么在那种情势下,说一句不实之言反而更好。在此等危急之际,这不实之言应当被接受——不必过度权衡——作为应说的“真言”,因为它服务于更高的目的:避祸自全,抵御不义的侵害者。

अवश्यंnecessarily, certainly
अवश्यं:
TypeIndeclinable
Rootअवश्यम्
कूजितव्येwhen one must speak/utter (lit. in the to-be-spoken situation)
कूजितव्ये:
Adhikarana
TypeVerb
Rootकूजितव्य
FormNeuter, Locative, Singular
वाor
वा:
TypeIndeclinable
Rootवा
शङ्केरन्they might suspect
शङ्केरन्:
TypeVerb
Rootशङ्क्
FormOptative (Vidhi-lin), 3rd, Plural, Parasmaipada
अप्पकूजतःfrom (one who is) speaking little / from not speaking enough
अप्पकूजतः:
Apadana
TypeAdjective
Rootअल्पकूजत्
FormMasculine/Neuter, Ablative, Singular
श्रेयःbetter, preferable
श्रेयः:
Karta
TypeNoun
Rootश्रेयस्
FormNeuter, Nominative, Singular
तत्रthere, in that situation
तत्र:
Adhikarana
TypeIndeclinable
Rootतत्र
अनृतंfalsehood, untruth
अनृतं:
Karma
TypeNoun
Rootअनृत
FormNeuter, Accusative, Singular
वक्तुंto speak
वक्तुं:
TypeVerb
Rootवच्
FormInfinitive (Tumun)
तत्that
तत्:
TypePronoun
Rootतद्
FormNeuter, Nominative/Accusative, Singular
सत्यंtruth
सत्यं:
TypeNoun
Rootसत्य
FormNeuter, Nominative/Accusative, Singular
अविचारितम्unexamined, without consideration
अविचारितम्:
TypeAdjective
Rootवि-चर्
FormNeuter, Nominative/Accusative, Singular, Past passive participle (kta) with privative a-

वायुदेव उवाच

V
Vāyu-deva (Wind-god)

Educational Q&A

In a crisis involving unjust aggressors, strict truth-telling may be overridden by apaddharma: if silence will arouse suspicion and endanger one, speaking an untruth can be the preferable, dharmically justified course for protection and escape.

Vāyu-deva instructs how to respond when confronted by people intent on wrongful seizure (robbers/aggressors): first try to avoid entanglement through silence, but if speech becomes unavoidable or silence itself becomes dangerous, one may speak a protective untruth.