Mahabharata — Anushasana Parva, Shloka 6

ब्रह्मस्वहरण-निषेधः — Prohibition of Appropriating Brahmin Property

Brahmasva

Devanagari script

दीक्षितश्न स राजापि क्षिप्रं नरकमाविशत्‌ | सह तैर्याजकै: सर्वर्त्रद्यस्वमुपजीव्य तत्‌

Transliteration

dīkṣitaś ca sa rājāpi kṣipraṁ narakam āviśat | saha tair yājakaiḥ sarvair adyāsvam upajīvya tat ||

Translation

The Cāṇḍāla said: “Even that king, though duly initiated for the sacrifice, quickly fell into hell—together with all the officiating priests—because they lived upon, and made use of, property wrongfully taken. Participation in a rite does not cleanse the taint of stolen wealth; whoever knowingly profits from it shares its moral consequence.”

Word by Word

• दीक्षितः: initiated (having taken consecration)
• दीक्षितः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: दीक्षित (√दिक्ष्/√दीक्ष् + क्त)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• सः: he
• सः: Karta
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: तद्
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• राजा: king
• राजा: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: राजन्
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• अपि: also/even
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अपि

• क्षिप्रम्: quickly
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: क्षिप्र

• नरकम्: hell
• नरकम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: नरक
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• आविशत्: entered
• Type: Verb
• Root: √विश्
• Form: Imperfect (Laṅ), 3rd, Singular, Parasmaipada

• सह: together with
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: सह

• तैः: with those
• तैः: Karana
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: तद्
• Form: Masculine/Neuter, Instrumental, Plural

• याजकैः: with the officiating priests
• याजकैः: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: याजक
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Plural

• सर्वत्र: everywhere / in all respects
• सर्वत्र: Adhikarana
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: सर्वत्र

• तत्: that
• तत्: Karma
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: तद्
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular

• स्वम्: one's own property/wealth
• स्वम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: स्व
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular

• उपजीव्य: having lived on / having used as livelihood
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: उपजीव्य (उप + √जीव् + ल्यप्)
• Form: Absolutive (Gerund)

Speaker

चाण्डाल उवाच

Characters & Entities

• चाण्डाल (Cāṇḍāla, speaker)
• राजा (the king, sacrificer)
• याजक (officiating priests)
• नरक (hell)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Ritual status (such as dīkṣā) does not override ethical wrongdoing: benefiting from stolen or unrighteously acquired wealth implicates both patron and priests, leading to karmic downfall.

What is happening in the narrative?

The speaker states that an initiated king and the officiating priests quickly went to hell because they used/depended upon property that was not rightfully obtained, underscoring the danger of conducting or supporting sacrifice with tainted wealth.