Chapter XVI · Śloka 7
प्रवृत्तिं च निवृत्तिं च जना न विदुरासुराः ।
न शौचं नापि चाचारो न सत्यं तेषु विद्यते ॥
न शौचं नापि चाचारो न सत्यं तेषु विद्यते ॥
pravṛttiṃ ca nivṛttiṃ ca janā na vidur āsurāḥ |
na śaucaṃ nāpi cācāro na satyaṃ teṣu vidyate ||
na śaucaṃ nāpi cācāro na satyaṃ teṣu vidyate ||
The demoniac do not know what to do and what to refrain from; neither purity, nor right conduct, nor truth is found in them.
This is the epistemological root of the demoniac condition: they lack discernment between pravṛtti (right action, engagement) and nivṛtti (right renunciation, withdrawal). Without this discrimination, purity, conduct, and truth — the three pillars of dharmic life — all collapse.