Verse 1.43
Speaker: Arjuna
Sanskrit
उत्सन्नकुलधर्माणां मनुष्याणां जनार्दन | नरके नियतं वासो भवतीत्यनुशुश्रुम ||४३||
Transliteration (IAST)
utsannakuladharmāṇāṁ manuṣyāṇāṁ janārdana | narake niyataṁ vāso bhavatītyanuśuśruma ||43||
Word-by-Word Meanings
उत्सन्नकुलधर्माणाम्-of those whose family traditions are destroyed
मनुष्याणाम्-of such men
नरके-in hell
नियतम्-certainly
वासः-residence
अनुशुश्रुम-we have heard from authorities
Translation
O Janardana, we have heard that those whose family dharma is destroyed dwell in hell for an indefinite period.
Commentary
Arjuna appeals to scriptural authority ('anuśuśruma' - we have heard from tradition). His argument is now complete: war leads to family destruction, which leads to social chaos, which leads to hell. Yet this chain of reasoning, while logically constructed, is built on the false premise that inaction is morally neutral.
Themes
dharmakarma