Mahabharata 23: He That Loves To Punish

In place or not, proper or not, Rajas wrapped, passion on unleash, And wrath and rage reaching red hot, In varied ways one loves to punish. ___________________________________________ Here is the transliteration of the original verse: asthāne yadi vā sthānesatatam rajasā āvŗtah | kŗddhah daņđān praņayativividhān svena tejasā || vana 28-17 || Yudhishthir here counters the argument that he is far too ready to pardon and forgive. A man of ready rage is too ready to punish, which is even worse than one ever pardoning. Note: rajasā āvŗtah = wrapped in rajas, the mode1 of action and illusion; kŗddhah = one enraged; daņđān praņayati = loves a punishing rod/sceptre. 1. According to Indic philosophy, there are three modes of material nature of a man: sattvas (altruism, honesty and harmony) , rajas (passion, action, illusion) , and tamas (lethargy, inaction, delusion) .