Shloka 456

आचारप्रशंसा

Praise of Ācāra as the Basis of Longevity, Fame, and Prosperity

Devanagari script

अकृत्वा देवपूजां च नाचरेद्‌ दन्‍तधावनम्‌ | सदा एकाग्रचित्त हो दिनमें उत्तरकी ओर मुँह करके ही मल-मूत्रका त्याग करे। दन्तधावन किये बिना देवताओंकी पूजा न करे

Transliteration

akṛtvā devapūjāṃ ca nācared dantadhāvanam | sadā ekāgracitto hi dine uttarakīṃ diśaṃ mukhaṃ kṛtvāiva mala-mūtra-tyāgaṃ kuryāt | dantadhāvanaṃ kṛtvā vinā devān na pūjayet |

Translation

يعلّم بهيشما آداب السلوك اليومي: لا يُباشَر تنظيف الأسنان قبل إتمام عبادة الآلهة، ولا تُؤدَّى عبادة الآلهة قبل تنظيف الأسنان. ومع حضور القلب وتركيز الذهن، إذا قضى المرء حاجته نهارًا فليتجه بوجهه نحو الشمال. ويؤكد هذا التوجيه أن طهارة البدن، وسكون النفس، والانضباط في الاتجاهات من أركان الدارما في شؤون اليوم والليلة.

Word by Word

• अकृत्वा: without having done
• Type: Verb
• Root: कृ (धातु)
• Form: क्त्वान्त अव्यय (gerund), कर्तरि

• देवपूजाम्: worship of the gods
• देवपूजाम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: देवपूजा (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• च: and
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च

• न: not
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न

• आचरेत्: should practice/perform
• Type: Verb
• Root: आ-चर् (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ्, आज्ञार्थ/विधि (optative), प्रथम, एकवचन, कर्तरि

• दन्तधावनम्: tooth-cleaning
• दन्तधावनम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: दन्तधावन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Bhishma
• Devas (gods)
• North direction (uttara-diś)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Bhishma links dharma to everyday discipline: maintain bodily cleanliness (tooth-cleaning), mental focus (ekāgratā), and proper ritual order with worship, treating these as ethical foundations of a regulated life.

What is happening in the narrative?

In the Anushasana Parva’s instruction on dharma, Bhishma is advising Yudhishthira on rules of daily routine—how to conduct worship and personal hygiene, and even the proper orientation while attending to bodily functions.