Dama-pradhāna-dharma (Self-restraint as the Root of Dharma) — Śānti-parva 154
धर्माधर्मो गृहीत्वेह सर्वे वर्तामहे5ध्वनि । मैं, यह सियार और तुम सब लोग जो इसके भाई बन्धु हो--ये सभी धर्म और अधर्मको लेकर यहाँ अपनी-अपनी राहपर चल रहे हैं
dharmādharmau gṛhītvaiha sarve vartāmahe ’dhvani |
豺狼阇婆迦说道:“在此世间,我们众生各循其道而行,身负法(dharma)与非法(adharma)而前。我——这豺狼——以及你们这些他的亲族与同伴,也都在这世上行走,背负善恶是非的重担与果报。”
जम्बुक उवाच
The verse stresses moral responsibility: every being moves through life carrying the consequences of both dharma (right action) and adharma (wrong action). One’s ‘path’ is shaped by what one chooses to uphold or violate.
Jambuka (a jackal) speaks reflectively, addressing others as fellow travelers in the world. He frames their shared condition as moving along life’s road while bearing the mixed realities of virtue and vice.