Mahabharata — Anushasana Parva, Shloka 27

Devanagari script

वायुरुवाच ब्राह्मणान्‌ क्षात्रधर्मेण पालयस्वेन्द्रियाणि च । भगुभ्यस्ते भयं घोरं तत्‌ तु कालाद भविष्यति

Transliteration

vāyur uvāca brāhmaṇān kṣātradharmeṇa pālayasvendriyāṇi ca | bhṛgubhyaḥ te bhayaṃ ghoraṃ tat tu kālād bhaviṣyati ||

Translation

বায়ু বললেন—রাজন! ক্ষত্রিয়ধর্ম অনুসারে ব্রাহ্মণদের রক্ষা করো এবং ইন্দ্রিয়সংযমও পালন করো। ভৃগুবংশীয় ব্রাহ্মণদের থেকে তোমার প্রতি ভয়ংকর আশঙ্কা আসবে; তবে তা বহু কাল পরে ঘটবে।

Word by Word

• {'vāyuḥ': 'Vāyu, the wind-deity

• a divine speaker', 'uvāca': 'said', 'brāhmaṇān': 'Brahmins

• members of the priestly/teaching class', 'kṣātra-dharmeṇa': 'by/according to kṣatriya-dharma

• the warrior-ruler’s code of duty', 'pālaya': 'protect, safeguard, govern (imperative sense)', 'indriyāṇi': 'the senses

• sense-faculties', 'saṃyam(a)/pālaya indriyāṇi': 'restrain/control the senses (ethical self-discipline implied)', 'bhṛgubhyaḥ': 'from the Bhṛgus

• descendants of the sage Bhṛgu', 'te': 'to you', 'bhayam': 'fear, danger', 'ghoram': 'terrible, dreadful', 'tat tu': 'but that', 'kālāt': 'after time

• in the course of time', 'bhaviṣyati': 'will happen, will come to pass'}

Speaker

अजुन उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vāyu
• Brāhmaṇas
• Kṣātra-dharma
• Indriyas (senses)
• Bhṛgus (Bhṛgu lineage)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

A ruler’s kṣatriya-dharma includes safeguarding Brahmins and practicing self-restraint; ethical governance is inseparable from control of the senses, and future consequences may unfold over time.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vāyu delivers counsel and a warning: the addressee should protect Brahmins and restrain the senses, while being told that a grave danger connected with the Bhṛgu lineage will arise, though only after a long time.