Shloka 127

Devanagari script

अरुन्धत्युवाच नित्यं परिभवेच्छवश्रूं भर्तुर्भवतु दुर्मना: । एका स्वादु समाश्षातु बिसस्तैन्यं करोति या,अरुन्धती बोलीं--जो स्त्री मृणालोंकी चोरी करती हो उसे प्रतिदिन सासका तिरस्कार करनेका, अपने पतिका दिल दुखानेका और अकेली ही स्वादिष्ट वस्तुएँ खानेका पाप लगे

Transliteration

arundhaty uvāca nityaṃ paribhavec chvaśrūṃ bhartur bhavatu durmanāḥ | ekā svādu samāśnīyāt bisastainyaṃ karoti yā ||

Translation

Arundhatī said: “A woman who steals lotus-stalks (mṛṇāla/bisa) incurs the fault of daily slighting her mother-in-law, of causing grief to her husband, and of eating delicacies all by herself.”

Word by Word

अरुन्धतीArundhatī

उवाचsaid/spoke

नित्यम्always

परिभवेत्should disrespect/insult

श्वश्रूम्mother-in-law

भर्तुःof (her) husband

भवतुlet there be / may (she) become

दुर्मनाःsad, distressed (in mind)

एकाalone

स्वादुsomething tasty/sweet

समश्नातुlet (her) eat/consume

बिसस्तैन्यम्theft of lotus-stalks (mṛṇāla)

करोतिdoes/commits

याwho (a woman) / she who

Speaker

विश्वामित्र उवाच

Characters & Entities

Arundhatī

mother-in-law (śvaśrū)

husband (bhartṛ)

lotus-stalk (bisa/mṛṇāla)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Cross References

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Even a seemingly small act of theft is treated as a serious breach of dharma, believed to generate further moral and relational harms—disrespect within the household, distress to one’s spouse, and selfish enjoyment—thereby warning against dishonesty and self-centered conduct.

What is happening in the narrative?

In a didactic passage, Arundhatī states a moral consequence: a woman who commits theft of lotus-stalks is said to incur sins that manifest as habitual contempt toward her mother-in-law, causing sorrow to her husband, and eating delicacies alone—framing theft as corrosive to family harmony.