Shloka 11

अहिंसयित्वा ब्रह्महत्याविधानम् / Brahmahatyā incurred without physical violence

Devanagari script

पृथिव्युवाच यथा महाणेवि क्षिप्त: क्षिप्रं लेष्टविनश्यति । तथा दुश्नरितं सर्व त्रिवृत्यां च निमज्जति,पृथ्वी कहती है--जिस प्रकार महासागरमें फेंका हुआ ढेला तुरंत गलकर नष्ट हो जाता है, उसी प्रकार याजन, अध्यापन और प्रतिग्रह--इन तीन वृत्तियोंसे जीविका चलानेवाले ब्राह्मणमें सारे दुष्कर्मोका लय हो जाता है

Transliteration

pṛthivy uvāca yathā mahārṇave kṣiptaḥ kṣipraṁ leṣṭo vinaśyati | tathā duścaritaṁ sarvaṁ trivṛttyāṁ ca nimajjati ||

Translation

The Earth said: “Just as a clod of earth, when thrown into the great ocean, quickly dissolves and disappears, so too all misconduct sinks and is submerged in one who lives by the threefold Brahminical means of livelihood—sacrificing for others, teaching, and accepting gifts.”

Word by Word

• {'pṛthivī uvāca': '‘The Earth said’ (personified Earth speaking)', 'yathā': 'just as', 'mahārṇava': 'the great ocean', 'kṣiptaḥ': 'thrown, cast', 'kṣipram': 'quickly, at once', 'leṣṭaḥ': 'a clod/lump (of earth)', 'vinaśyati': 'perishes, dissolves, is destroyed', 'tathā': 'so, in the same way', 'duścaritam': 'bad conduct, wrongdoing, misconduct', 'sarvam': 'all, entirely', 'trivṛttyām': 'in the threefold livelihood/occupation (of a brāhmaṇa)', 'nimajjati': 'sinks, is submerged, is drowned (i.e., loses force/visibility)'}

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Pṛthivī (Earth)
• mahārṇava (great ocean)
• leṣṭa (clod/lump of earth)
• trivṛtti (threefold Brahmin livelihood: yājana, adhyāpana, pratigraha)