Shloka 14
Virtue and Vice — Chanakya Niti
प्रियवाक्यप्रदानेन सर्वे तुष्यन्ति जन्तवः ।
तस्मात्तदेव वक्तव्यं वचने का दरिद्रता ॥
priyavākyapradānena sarve tuṣyanti jantavaḥ |
tasmāt tadevavaktavyaṃ vacane kā daridratā ||
All beings are pleased by the gift of pleasing speech; therefore speak such words—there is no poverty in speaking.
FAQs
Within the broader nīti (didactic-ethical) tradition, the verse functions as a compact aphorism on the social utility of controlled and agreeable speech. Such formulations are common in Sanskrit instructional literature associated with courtly culture and administrative milieus, where interpersonal diplomacy and verbal restraint were treated as practical virtues in maintaining social cohesion.
The verse frames 'priya-vākya' (pleasing or agreeable speech) as a low-cost social instrument: it is presented as capable of producing satisfaction broadly (sarve… jantavaḥ), and it is contrasted with material expenditure through the rhetorical question about 'daridratā' (poverty) in speaking.
The compound priyavākyapradāna ('the giving of pleasing words') treats speech as a transferable gift (pradāna), a common metaphor in Sanskrit moral discourse. The closing question—vacane kā daridratā—uses 'poverty' figuratively to argue that agreeable speech does not entail financial loss, reinforcing the verse’s pragmatic tone through a concise rhetorical device.