Shloka 34

Devanagari script

पर्वत उवाच ग्रामे चाधिकृत: सो5स्तु खरयानेन गच्छतु । शुन: कर्षतु वृत्त्यर्थे यस्ते हरति पुष्करम्‌

Transliteration

parvata uvāca grāme cādhikṛtaḥ so 'stu kharayānena gacchatu | śunaḥ karṣatu vṛttyarthe yas te harati puṣkaram ||

Translation

Parvata sprach: „Möge er in der Dorfgemeinde in ein Amt eingesetzt werden und auf einem Eselskarren umherfahren. Möge man ihn, um seinen Lebensunterhalt zu verdienen, mit Hunden pflügen lassen — ihn, der deinen Lotus stahl.“

Word by Word

पर्वतःParvata (name), the mountain

उवाचsaid

ग्रामेin the village

चand

अधिकृतःappointed/put in charge

सःhe

अस्तुlet (him) be / let (it) be

खरयानेनby/with a donkey-cart (donkey-vehicle)

गच्छतुlet him go

शुनःof a dog

कर्षतुlet (it/him) pull

वृत्त्यर्थेfor livelihood (for the sake of maintenance)

यःwho

तेof you/your

हरतिtakes away/steals

पुष्करम्lotus; (also) a bowl/drum (context-dependent)

Speaker

पर्वत उवाच

Characters & Entities

Parvata

grāma (village)

khara (donkey)

yāna (cart/vehicle)

śvan (dog)

puṣkara (lotus)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse conveys a dharmic principle of deterrent justice: theft—especially of another’s valued possession—warrants a punishment that both restrains the offender and publicly marks the wrongdoing, using social humiliation and hard labor as corrective measures.

What is happening in the narrative?

Parvata proposes a specific penalty for the person who stole ‘your lotus’: the offender should be made a low-status village functionary, forced to travel on a donkey-cart, and compelled to plough using dogs—images meant to signify disgrace and harsh, corrective labor.