Shloka 10

Śāṇḍilī–Sumanā-saṃvāda: Sat-strī-samudācāra and Pati-dharma

Conduct of the Virtuous Wife

Devanagari script

त्रीण्येव तु पदान्याहु: पुरुषस्योत्तमं व्रतम्‌ । न द्रह्मेच्चैव दद्याच्च सत्यं चैव परं वदेत्‌

Transliteration

trīṇy eva tu padāny āhuḥ puruṣasyottamaṃ vratam | na drohamec caiva dadyāc ca satyaṃ caiva paraṃ vadet ||

Translation

قال فياسا: «يُعلِنون أن للإنسان ثلاث خُطى وحدها تُكوِّن النذر الأعلى: ألا يخون أحدًا ولا يؤذيه، وأن يُعطي الصدقة، وأن يقول دائمًا الحقَّ الأعلى.»

Word by Word

• {'trīṇi': 'three', 'eva': 'certainly', 'tu': 'but, however', 'padāni': 'steps, measures, practices', 'āhuḥ': 'they say, they declare', 'puruṣasya': 'of a person, of a man', 'uttamam': 'highest, best', 'vratam': 'vow, disciplined observance', 'na': 'not', 'droham': 'treachery, malice, harmful betrayal', 'īcet (mecca)': 'should desire/should engage in (injunctive sense: should not do)', 'ca': 'and', 'dadyāt': 'should give (in charity)', 'satyam': 'truth', 'param': 'supreme, highest', 'vadet': 'should speak'}

Speaker

व्यास उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vyāsa

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse condenses the ‘highest vow’ into three ethical disciplines: refrain from harming or betraying others (adroha), practice generosity (dāna), and uphold truthfulness in speech (satya).

What is happening in the narrative?

In Anuśāsana Parva’s instruction-focused setting, Vyāsa articulates a concise dharma-summary, presenting a practical triad of conduct as an authoritative guideline for righteous living.