Mahabharata — Sabha Parva, Shloka 5

Devanagari script

नत्वां संदेष्टमहामि है [ प्रति शुचिस्मिते । साध्वीगुणसमापतन्ना भूषितं ते कुलद्धयम्‌

Transliteration

na tvāṃ saṃdeṣṭum aham iha prati śucismite | sādhvī-guṇa-samāpannā bhūṣitaṃ te kuladvayam ||

Translation

قال فَيْشَمْبَايَنَة: «يا ذاتَ الابتسامةِ الطاهرةِ الرقيقة، لا أرى حاجةً هنا لأن أُعلِّمكِ ما واجبُكِ نحو أزواجكِ. لقد تزيَّنتِ بفضائلِ النساءِ العفيفاتِ النبيلات، وجلبتِ الشرفَ والزينةَ لكِلتا السلالتين: سلالةِ أبيكِ وسلالةِ زوجكِ».

Word by Word

• {'na': 'not', 'tvām': 'you (accusative singular)', 'saṃdeṣṭum': 'to instruct, to advise, to admonish', 'aham': 'I', 'iha': 'here, in this context', 'prati': 'toward

• addressing (vocative nuance)', 'śuci-smite': 'O one with a pure/bright smile (vocative)', 'sādhvī': 'a chaste/noble woman

• virtuous wife', 'guṇa': 'virtue, quality', 'samāpannā': 'endowed with, possessed of', 'bhūṣitam': 'adorned

• made splendid', 'te': 'your', 'kula-dvayam': 'both families/lineages (father’s and husband’s)'}

Speaker

वैशमग्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vaiśaṃpāyana
• the addressed virtuous woman (śucismitā)
• two lineages (kula-dvaya: paternal and marital families)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

True ethical conduct is recognized by character: a woman established in sādhvī-guṇas (chastity, integrity, propriety) naturally upholds dharma and brings honor to both her natal and marital families, making explicit instruction unnecessary.

What is happening in the narrative?

The narrator Vaiśaṃpāyana addresses a woman praised for her pure smile and virtue, stating that he need not lecture her on her duty toward her husbands because her conduct already exemplifies the ideals expected of a noble wife and she has enhanced the reputation of both family lineages.