Shloka 24

Udyoga Parva Adhyāya 132 — Vidura’s Counsel on Udyama, Yaśas, and Kṣātra-Dharma

Devanagari script

श्रुतेन तपसा वापि श्रिया वा विक्रमेण वा

Transliteration

śrutena tapasā vāpi śriyā vā vikrameṇa vā

Translation

سواء أكان ذلك بالعلم الموروث من التقليد المقدّس، أم بالزهد، أم بالثراء والبهاء، أم بالبأس والبطولة…

Word by Word

• श्रुतेन: by learning / by sacred knowledge
• श्रुतेन: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: श्रुति
• Form: Feminine, Instrumental, Singular

• तपसा: by austerity / penance
• तपसा: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: तपस्
• Form: Neuter, Instrumental, Singular

• वा: or
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: वा

• अपि: also / even
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अपि

• श्रिया: by prosperity / by fortune / by splendor
• श्रिया: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: श्री
• Form: Feminine, Instrumental, Singular

• वा: or
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: वा

• विक्रमेण: by valor / by prowess
• विक्रमेण: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: विक्रम
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Singular

• वा: or
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: वा

Speaker

वायुदेव उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vāyu (Wind-god)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse lists major sources of human excellence—learning, austerity, prosperity, and valor—implying that moral worth or rightful standing is not confined to a single kind of achievement; it can be grounded in multiple forms of merit, each carrying ethical responsibility.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vāyu is speaking and begins a statement by enumerating different bases of distinction (scriptural learning, ascetic discipline, worldly fortune, and heroic power), setting up a broader point that continues in the surrounding verses.