Shloka 11
Ādi Parva, Adhyāya 68 — Sarvadamana’s Childhood and Śakuntalā’s Claim at Court
स्वकर्मनिरता विप्रा नानृतं तेषु विद्यते । स चाद्भुतमहावीर्यों वज़संहननो युवा,ब्राह्मण अपने वर्णाश्रमोचित कर्मोमें तत्पर थे। उनमें झूठ एवं छल-कपट आदिका अभाव था। राजा दुष्यन्त स्वयं भी नवयुवक थे। उनका शरीर वज्रके सदृश दृढ था। वे अदभुत एवं महान् पराक्रमसे सम्पन्न थे
svakarmaniratā viprā nānṛtaṃ teṣu vidyate | sa cādbhuta-mahāvīryo vajrasaṃhanano yuvā ||
Vaiśampāyana sprach: Die Brāhmaṇas waren ihren vorgeschriebenen Pflichten ergeben; unter ihnen gab es keine Unwahrheit. Und er—jung, mit einem gedrungenen, festen Leib wie ein Donnerkeil—war mit wunderbarer und großer Tapferkeit begabt.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse links social-ethical order with personal character: brāhmaṇas are praised for steadfastness in their own dharma and for truthfulness (absence of anṛta), while the ideal ruler/hero is marked by youthful vigor and extraordinary valor—suggesting that a righteous society depends on both integrity among the learned and strength in leadership.
Vaiśampāyana describes the qualities of the brāhmaṇas present—dutiful and free from deceit—and then characterizes a youthful, thunderbolt-bodied, highly valorous figure (contextually, the king being described in this episode) to set the scene and establish moral and heroic tone.