Shloka 243

शल्यस्य सेनापत्याभ्युपगमः | Śalya’s Acceptance of Command

Devanagari script

कृपणं वर्तयिष्यामि कृपणै: सह जीविकाम्‌ । “स्वयं बहुत-से भोग भोगकर और प्रचुर धन दान करके अब दीन पुरुषोंके साथ दीनतापूर्ण जीविकाका आश्रय ले किस प्रकार निर्वाह कर सकूँगा?

Transliteration

kṛpaṇaṁ vartayiṣyāmi kṛpaṇaiḥ saha jīvikām | svayaṁ bahu-śe bhogān bhuktvā ca pracuraṁ dhanaṁ dātvā ca idānīṁ dīna-puruṣaiḥ saha dīnatā-pūrṇāṁ jīvikām āśritya kathaṁ nirvāhaṁ kariṣyāmi?

Translation

Sañjaya said: “How can I sustain myself by adopting a wretched livelihood among the wretched—after I myself have long enjoyed many pleasures and have also given away abundant wealth in gifts? Now, to take refuge in a life of destitution alongside destitute men—how could I possibly carry on?”

Word by Word

• कृपणम्: wretchedly, miserably (a wretched state)
• कृपणम्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: कृपण
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular

• वर्तयिष्यामि: I will maintain/lead (my life)
• वर्तयिष्यामि: Karta
• Type: Verb
• Root: वृत् (वर्तते) / वर्तय् (caus.)
• Form: Simple Future (Luṭ), 1st, Singular, Parasmaipada, Causative (ṇijanta)

• कृपणैः: with/among wretched (poor) men
• कृपणैः: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: कृपण
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Plural

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

• जीविकाम्: livelihood, means of living
• जीविकाम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: जीविका
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Singular

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights the psychological and ethical tension between past prosperity and present hardship: attachment to former pleasures and status makes the acceptance of a humble livelihood feel unbearable. It implicitly points to the need for steadiness and detachment—recognizing that wealth and comfort are unstable, and that dignity in right conduct should not depend on external prosperity.

What is happening in the narrative?

In Sañjaya’s narration during the Shalya Parva context, a speaker voices anxiety about survival after a reversal of fortune—wondering how, after having enjoyed many pleasures and having given away much wealth, he can now live among the destitute by adopting a destitute means of living.