Shloka 2

Brāhmaṇa-kṛtya, Āśrama-niyama, and Dāna-prasaṃsā

Duties of the Brāhmaṇa, āśrama discipline, and praise of giving

Devanagari script

श्रिया विहीनमासीनमक्षो भ्यामिव सागरम्‌ | भवाभवज्ञं भूतानामित्युवाच पुरंदर:

Transliteration

bhīṣma uvāca | śriyā vihīnam āsīnam akṣobhyām iva sāgaram | bhavābhavajñaṃ bhūtānām ity uvāca purandaraḥ ||

Translation

Bhīṣma sprach: „(Indra) sagte über ihn: ‚Obwohl der königlichen Glücksgunst beraubt, saß er unbewegt da—wie der Ozean, den nichts aufzuwühlen vermag—denn er verstand Aufstieg und Niedergang der Wesen, wie sie sich im Lauf der Zeit vollziehen.‘“ Da trat der Götterkönig Indra zum Daitya-König Namuci und redete ihn folgendermaßen an—

Word by Word

• श्रिया: by/with fortune, prosperity
• श्रिया: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: श्री
• Form: Feminine, Instrumental, Singular

• विहीनम्: deprived (of)
• विहीनम्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: विहीन
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• आसीनम्: seated, sitting
• आसीनम्: Karma
• Type: Verb
• Root: आस्
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular, क्त (past passive participle)

• अक्षोभ्यम्: unagitated, unshakable
• अक्षोभ्यम्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अक्षोभ्य
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• इव: like, as
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: इव

• सागरम्: ocean
• सागरम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: सागर
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• भवाभवज्ञम्: knowing rise and fall (existence and non-existence)
• भवाभवज्ञम्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: भवाभवज्ञ
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• भूतानाम्: of beings, of creatures
• Type: Noun
• Root: भूत
• Form: Neuter, Genitive, Plural

• इति: thus
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: इति

• उवाच: said, spoke
• Type: Verb
• Root: वच्
• Form: Perfect (लिट्), 3rd, Singular, Parasmaipada

• पुरंदरः: Purandara (Indra)
• पुरंदरः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: पुरंदर
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Bhīṣma
• Purandara (Indra)
• Daitya-rāja Namuci
• Śrī (royal fortune/prosperity)
• Sāgara (ocean)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

True steadiness is shown when prosperity departs: the wise remain unshaken, understanding that worldly rise and fall occur by the course of time and are not grounds for inner collapse.

What is happening in the narrative?

Namuci has lost his royal fortune yet remains calm like an unperturbed ocean; Indra (Purandara) comes to him and begins to speak, setting up a dialogue framed by Bhishma’s narration.