Shloka 31

शान्ति पर्व (अध्याय 38): युधिष्ठिरस्य राजधर्म-जिज्ञासा तथा भीष्मोपसर्पण-प्रस्तावना | Shanti Parva Chapter 38: Yudhishthira’s Inquiry into Rajadharma and the Prelude to Approaching Bhishma

Devanagari script

वैशम्पायन उवाच ततो राजन ब्राह्मणास्ते सर्व एव विशाम्पते । ऊचुर्नैतद्‌ वचो<स्माकं श्रीरस्तु तव पार्थिव,वैशम्पायनजी कहते हैं--राजन्‌! प्रजानाथ! उनकी यह बात सुनकर सब ब्राह्मण बोल उठे--“महाराज! यह हमारी बात नहीं कह रहा है। हम तो यह आशीर्वाद देते हैं कि “आपकी राजलक्ष्मी सदा बनी रहे”

Transliteration

vaiśampāyana uvāca | tato rājan brāhmaṇās te sarva eva viśāmpate | ūcur naitad vaco 'smākaṃ śrīr astu tava pārthiva ||

Translation

Vaiśampāyana said: Then, O King, O lord of the people, all those brāhmaṇas spoke up: “This statement is not ours. Rather, O ruler of the earth, we offer you this blessing—may royal prosperity ever abide with you.”

Word by Word

• [{'term': 'tataḥ', 'definition': 'then

• thereafter'}, {'term': 'rājan', 'definition': 'O king (vocative of rājan)'}, {'term': 'brāhmaṇāḥ', 'definition': 'brāhmaṇas

• members of the priestly/learned class'}, {'term': 'te', 'definition': 'those

• they'}, {'term': 'sarva eva', 'definition': 'all indeed

• every one of them'}, {'term': 'viśāmpate', 'definition': 'O lord of the people/subjects (epithet of a king)'}, {'term': 'ūcuḥ', 'definition': 'they said

• they spoke (perfect of √vac)'}, {'term': 'na etat', 'definition': 'not this'}, {'term': 'vacaḥ', 'definition': 'speech

• utterance'}, {'term': 'asmākam', 'definition': 'of us

• our'}, {'term': 'śrīḥ', 'definition': 'fortune

• royal splendor (Śrī/Lakṣmī)'}, {'term': 'astu', 'definition': 'let it be

• may it be (imperative/benedictive of √as)'}, {'term': 'tava', 'definition': 'your

• of you'}, {'term': 'pārthiva', 'definition': 'O earthly ruler

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vaiśampāyana
• the King (rājan/pārthiva/viśāmpati)
• Brāhmaṇas
• Śrī (royal fortune/prosperity)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights the ethical weight of speech and collective responsibility: the brāhmaṇas publicly disown a statement not attributable to them and instead offer an auspicious benediction, reinforcing that counsel to a king should be truthful, owned, and oriented toward welfare and stability (śrī).

What is happening in the narrative?

After hearing a remark attributed to them, the assembled brāhmaṇas address the king and clarify that the words are not theirs; they then bless him, saying that royal fortune/prosperity should remain with him.