Shloka 3

मārkaṇḍeya-ukta yuddha-vyūha-pratyavyūhaḥ

Battle Formations and Countermeasures in the Rāmopākhyāna

Devanagari script

न किंचिदीड्यं प्रवदन्ति पाप॑ वनेचरं वा गृहमेधिनं वा । तपस्विनं सम्परिपूर्णविद्यं भषन्ति हैवं श्वनरा: सुवीर,“अच्छे लोग पूजनीय, तपस्वी तथा पूर्ण विद्वान्‌ पुरुषके प्रति भले ही वह वनवासी हो या गृहस्थ कोई अनुचित बात नहीं कहते हैं। जयद्रथ! मनुष्योंमें जो तेरे-जैसे कुत्ते हैं, वे ही इस तरह भूँका करते हैं

Transliteration

na kiñcid īḍyaṃ pravadanti pāpā vane-caraṃ vā gṛha-medhinaṃ vā | tapasvinaṃ samparipūrṇa-vidyaṃ bhaṣanti haivaṃ śva-narāḥ su-vīra ||

Translation

Vaiśampāyana sprach: Die Bösen bringen nichts hervor, was des Lobes würdig wäre. Ob einer im Wald lebt oder den Haushalt führt—ist er ein Asket und im Wissen vollendet, so reden die Guten ihn nicht mit unziemlichen Worten an. O Tapferer—nur Menschen, die Hunden gleichen, bellen auf solche Weise, wie du es tust.

Word by Word

[{'term''na kiñcit', 'meaning': 'nothing at all'}, {'term': 'īḍyam', 'meaning': 'praiseworthy

worthy of reverence'}, {'term''pravadanti', 'meaning': 'they speak

they utter'}, {'term''pāpāḥ', 'meaning': 'wicked people

sinners'}, {'term''vane-caram', 'meaning': 'forest-dweller

one who lives in the woods'}, {'term''gṛha-medhinam', 'meaning': 'householder

one engaged in domestic life'}, {'term''tapasvinam', 'meaning': 'ascetic

one practicing austerity'}, {'term''samparipūrṇa-vidyam', 'meaning': 'fully accomplished in knowledge

perfectly learned'}, {'term''bhaṣanti', 'meaning': 'they speak

they talk (often with a disparaging nuance)'}, {'term''ha', 'meaning': 'indeed

emphatic particle'}, {'term''evam', 'meaning': 'thus

in this way'}, {'term''śva-narāḥ', 'meaning': 'dog-like men

men of canine nature'}, {'term''su-vīra', 'meaning': 'O brave one

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vaiśampāyana

Jayadratha

tapasvin (ascetic)

vane-cara (forest-dweller)

gṛha-medhin (householder)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Cross References

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Right speech is a mark of the good: one should not speak improperly to a learned ascetic, regardless of whether he lives as a forest-dweller or a householder. Harsh, contemptuous speech is portrayed as the behavior of the wicked—'dog-like' people.

What is happening in the narrative?

In Vaiśampāyana’s narration, a rebuke is directed at Jayadratha: his manner of speaking is condemned as abusive and ignoble, contrasting him with 'good people' who maintain reverence and restraint toward virtuous, learned ascetics.