Shloka 11
Dharma and Wealth — Chanakya Niti
सत्यं माता पिता ज्ञानं धर्मो भ्राता दया सखा ।
शान्तिः पत्नी क्षमा पुत्रः षडेते मम बान्धवाः ॥
satyaṃ mātā pitā jñānaṃ dharmo bhrātā dayā sakhā |
śāntiḥ patnī kṣamā putraḥ ṣaḍete mama bāndhavāḥ ||
Truth is my mother, knowledge my father, dharma my brother, compassion my friend; peace my wife, forgiveness my son—these six are my kin.
FAQs
In the broader Nīti-śāstra tradition, verses commonly recast ethical qualities as stable social relationships (kin, spouse, friend) to make abstract virtues memorable and culturally resonant. This reflects a milieu in which household and kinship structures were prominent reference frames for moral discourse, including in texts associated with courtly instruction and pragmatic ethics.
Kinship is presented metaphorically rather than genealogically: the verse treats core virtues (truth, knowledge, dharma, compassion, peace, forgiveness) as equivalent to familial bonds. The formulation suggests a conceptual hierarchy of support—nurture (mother), authority/origin (father), solidarity (brother), companionship (friend), domestic stability (wife), and continuity/legacy (son).
The verse uses nominative equational statements (e.g., satyaṃ mātā) that function as compact identifications, a common didactic style in Sanskrit subhāṣita literature. The closing phrase “ṣaḍete mama bāndhavāḥ” (“these six are my relatives”) frames virtues as an alternative ‘family,’ emphasizing internalized ethical resources over biological lineage through culturally legible roles.