Shloka 18

Practical Maxims — Chanakya Niti

Devanagari script

पतिर्नजहातिलीलाम् उअन्त्रार्पितोमघुग्तनिजहातिचेक्षुः

क्षीणो पिनत्यजितशीलगुणान्कुलीनः ॥

Translation

The Sanskrit for this verse appears corrupted or incomplete, so a faithful translation isn’t possible. Please provide the correct text.

Word by Word

• पतिः: husband/lord
• Type: Noun
• Root: पति
• Form: पुंलिङ्गः प्रथमा एकवचनम्

• न: not
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न
• Form: अव्ययम्

• जहाति: abandons
• Type: Verb
• Root: हा
• Form: लट् वर्तमानः; प्रथमपुरुषः एकवचनम्; परस्मैपदम्

• लीलाम्: sport/play
• Type: Noun
• Root: लीला
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्गः द्वितीया एकवचनम्

• क्षीणः: emaciated/weakened
• Type: Adjective
• Root: क्षीण
• Form: पुंलिङ्गः प्रथमा एकवचनम्; क्त (क्षि)

• पि: even/also
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अपि
• Form: अव्ययम् (पाठे ‘पि’ = ‘अपि’)

• न: not
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न
• Form: अव्ययम्

• त्यजित: abandoned
• Type: Adjective
• Root: त्यज्
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग/पुंलिङ्गः (समासाङ्ग); क्त

• शील: conduct/nature
• Type: Noun
• Root: शील
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्गः (समासाङ्ग)

• गुण: virtue/quality
• Type: Noun
• Root: गुण
• Form: पुंलिङ्गः (समासाङ्ग)

• अनुकूलीनः: favorable/agreeable
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अनुकूलीन
• Form: पुंलिङ्गः प्रथमा एकवचनम्

Speaker

• Chanakya (Kautilya)

Tags

• Ancient Ethics
• Political History
• Sanskrit Literature
• Historical Philosophy

FAQs

What is the historical context of this verse?

Because the transmitted wording is corrupt, the verse’s specific historical prescription cannot be situated securely. If you provide a verified reading from a printed edition/manuscript or a standard Chanakya-niti recension, I can contextualize it within early Indian niti (didactic) literature and its courtly-social milieu.

How does the text define [Topic] in this specific verse?

The topic cannot be determined from the current string with philological confidence. With a corrected text, I can analyze how the verse frames the relevant ethical/political concept (e.g., loyalty, conduct, lineage, self-control) using neutral historical phrasing.

What is the linguistic or metaphorical significance of this shloka?

A reliable linguistic/metaphorical analysis requires a stable Sanskrit text. The present form contains sequences that do not correspond to standard Sanskrit morphology or metrical expectation, suggesting OCR/typing corruption or a damaged transmission.