Shloka 48
Devanagari script
आत्मानमुपजीवन दीक्षां द्वादशवार्षिकीम्
Transliteration
ātmānam upajīvan dīkṣāṃ dvādaśavārṣikīm
Translation
«ومن عاش معتمدًا على نفسه وحدها، فليتخذ دīkṣā—نذرَ التلقين—لمدة اثنتي عشرة سنة.»
Word by Word
आत्मानम्oneself
आत्मानम्:
Karma
TypeNoun
Rootआत्मन्
FormMasculine, Accusative, Singular
उपजीवन्living (by), subsisting
उपजीवन्:
Karta
TypeVerb
Rootउपजीव्
Formशतृ (present active participle), Masculine, Nominative, Singular
दीक्षाम्vow, consecration, religious observance
दीक्षाम्:
Karma
TypeNoun
Rootदीक्षा
FormFeminine, Accusative, Singular
द्वादशवार्षिकीम्twelve-year (lasting)
द्वादशवार्षिकीम्:
Karma
TypeAdjective
Rootद्वादश-वार्षिक
FormFeminine, Accusative, Singular
Speaker
श्रीमहेश्वर उवाच
Characters & Entities
Ś
Śrīmaheśvara (Mahādeva/Śiva)Ā
ātman (the self)Character Dynamics
Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)
Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)
Philosophical Teaching
Political Layer
Geographic Context
Meter (Chandas)
Sandhi Notes
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores sustained self-discipline: one should rely on one’s own regulated life (ātma-niyama) and undertake a long, consecrated observance (dīkṣā) for purification and firmness in dharma.
Śrīmaheśvara is speaking, prescribing a specific ascetic-religious regimen: a twelve-year dīkṣā characterized by self-reliant subsistence and disciplined conduct, presented as a means to spiritual and ethical attainment.