Text 10
dharmam eke yaśaś cānye
kāmaṁ satyaṁ damaṁ śamam
anye vadanti svārthaṁ vā
aiśvaryaṁ tyāga-bhojanam
kecid yajñaṁ tapo dānaṁ
vratāni niyamān yamān
dharmam — pious activities; eke — some people; yaśaḥ — fame; ca — also; anye — others; kāmam — sense gratification; satyam — truthfulness; damam — self-control; śamam — peacefulness; anye — others; vadanti — propound; sva-artham — pursuing one’s self-interest; vai — certainly; aiśvaryam — opulence or political influence; tyāga — renunciation; bhojanam — consumption; kecit — some people; yajñam — sacrifice; tapaḥ — austerity; dānam — charity; vratāni — taking vows; niyamān — regular religious duties; yamān — strict regulative discipline.
Some say that people will be happy by performing pious religious activities. Others say that happiness is attained through fame, sense gratification, truthfulness, self-control, peace, self-interest, political influence, opulence, renunciation, consumption, sacrifice, penance, charity, vows, regulated duties or strict disciplinary regulation. Each process has its proponents.
Dharmam eke refers to those atheistic philosophers called karma-mīmāṁsakas, who state that one should not waste time worrying about a kingdom of God that no one has ever seen and from which no one has ever returned; rather, one should expertly utilize the laws of karma, performing fruitive activities in such a way that one will always be well situated. Concerning fame, it is said that as long as the fame of a human being is sung in the pious planets, he may live for thousands of years in material heaven. Kāmam refers to Vedic texts like the Kāma-sūtra as well as millions of modern books that advise one about sex pleasure. Some people state that the highest virtue in life is honesty; others say it is self-control, peace of mind and so on. Each viewpoint has proponents and “scriptures.” Others say that law, order and morality are the highest good, whereas still others propose political influence as the real self-interest of human beings. Some state that one should give away one’s material possessions to the needy; others state that one should try to enjoy this life as far as possible; and others recommend daily rituals, disciplinary vows, penances, and so on.