Shloka 4

Adhyāya 57: Tapas–Dāna Phala

On the Fruits of Austerity and Giving

Devanagari script

चित्रशालाक्ष विविधास्तोरणानि च भारत । शाद्वलोपचितां भूमिं तथा काञ्चनकुट्टिमाम्‌

Transliteration

citraśālā-kṣāḥ vividhās toraṇāni ca bhārata | śādvalopacitāṃ bhūmiṃ tathā kāñcana-kuṭṭimām ||

Translation

Bhīṣma sprach: „O Bhārata, es gab vielerlei kunstvoll geschmückte Hallen und Torbögen; der Boden war mit frischem Rasen bedeckt und ebenso mit goldenem Pflaster ausgelegt.“

Word by Word

• चित्रशालाक्ष: having variegated/painted halls (or: with splendid halls)
• चित्रशालाक्ष: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: चित्र-शालाक्ष
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Plural

• विविधानि: various
• विविधानि: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: विविध
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Plural

• तोरणानि: arches/gateways
• तोरणानि: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: तोरण
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Plural

• च: and
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च

• भारत: O Bharata
• Type: Noun
• Root: भारत
• Form: Masculine, Vocative, Singular

• शाद्वलोपचिताम्: covered/overgrown with grass
• शाद्वलोपचिताम्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: शाद्वल-उपचित
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Singular

• भूमिम्: ground/earth
• भूमिम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: भूमि
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Singular

• तथा: likewise/also
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तथा

• काञ्चनकुट्टिमाम्: a golden pavement/flooring
• काञ्चनकुट्टिमाम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: काञ्चन-कुट्टिमा
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Singular

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Bhīṣma
• Bhārata (Yudhiṣṭhira)
• citraśālāḥ (ornamented halls)
• toraṇāni (gateways/arches)
• śādvalopacitā bhūmi (turf-covered ground)
• kāñcana-kuṭṭimā (golden pavement)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse supports a dharmic ideal of orderly, auspicious preparation for a righteous royal or ritual context: prosperity and beauty are presented as appropriate when aligned with duty and proper conduct, not as mere indulgence.

What is happening in the narrative?

Bhīṣma is describing a richly prepared setting—ornamented halls and ceremonial gateways, with the ground laid with turf and golden paving—evoking the grandeur and auspicious arrangement of a royal/ritual venue while instructing Yudhiṣṭhira.