Shloka 14

Vyāsa’s Counsel to the Concealed Pāṇḍavas; Śaṃkara’s Boon and the Predestination of Draupadī

Chapter 157

Devanagari script

एतावान्‌ पुरुषस्तात कृतं यस्मिन्‌ न नश्यति । यावच्च कुर्यादन्यो<5स्य कुर्यादभ्यधिकं तत:,“तात! जिसके प्रति किया हुआ उपकार उसका बदला चुकाये बिना नष्ट नहीं होता, वही पुरुष है (और इतना ही उसका पौरुष--मानवता है कि) दूसरा मनुष्य उसके प्रति जितना उपकार करे, वह उससे भी अधिक उस मनुष्यका प्रत्युपकार कर दे

Transliteration

etāvān puruṣas tāta kṛtaṃ yasmin na naśyati | yāvac ca kuryād anyo 'sya kuryād abhyadhikaṃ tataḥ ||

Translation

„Mein lieber Sohn, nur in diesem Maße darf man einen Menschen einen wahren Mann nennen: dass eine ihm erwiesene Wohltat nicht ohne Erwiderung vergeht. Und welche Güte ihm ein anderer auch erweist, er vergelte sie mit noch größerer Güte.“

Word by Word

[{'term''etāvān', 'definition': 'so much

to this extent'}, {'term''puruṣaḥ', 'definition': 'man

person (herea truly noble person)'}, {'term': 'tāta', 'definition': 'dear child

son (affectionate address)'}, {'term''kṛtam', 'definition': 'a deed done

kindness rendered'}, {'term''yasmin', 'definition': 'in whom

toward whom (relative pronoun)'}, {'term''na naśyati', 'definition': 'does not perish

is not lost (i.e., is not left unrequited)'}, {'term''yāvat', 'definition': 'as much as

to whatever extent'}, {'term''kuryāt', 'definition': 'should do

may do (optativenormative/ethical sense)'}, {'term': 'anyaḥ', 'definition': 'another person'}, {'term': 'asya', 'definition': 'to him

of him (genitive used for relation‘toward him’)'}, {'term': 'abhyadhikam', 'definition': 'greater

exceeding'}, {'term''tataḥ', 'definition': 'than that

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vaiśampāyana (speaker)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

True human nobility is defined by gratitude: a benefit received should not be allowed to ‘perish’ without repayment, and the virtuous person strives to return even more than what was given.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vaiśampāyana delivers a moral maxim within the ongoing narration, emphasizing the ethical standard of kṛtajñatā (recognizing and repaying kindness) as a mark of genuine manliness and virtue.