17.19 A man should never mock any helpless and afflicted person, because tomorrow he may also be in the same situation. Chanakya has clarified it further in this shloka. An impertinent boy laughing, asked an old woman "Oh young girl! What are you searching?" Hearing his mocking tone, the old woman said, "Due to my old age, my youth in the avatar of a pearl has fallen down, I am searching it." In this context, Chanakya says that sooner or later, a man has to definitely face old age. So, a man should refrain from the tendency to mock others.
