Shloka 10

Devanagari script

यथा हानुदये राजन्‌ भूतानि शशिसूर्ययो: । अन्धे तमसि मज्जेयुरपश्यन्त: परस्परम्‌,राजन! जैसे सूर्य और चन्द्रमाका उदय न होनेपर समस्त प्राणी घोर अन्धकारमें डूब जाते हैं और एक-दूसरेको देख नहीं पाते हैं, जैसे थोड़े जलवाले तालाबमें मत्स्यगण तथा रक्षकरहित उपवनमें पक्षियोंके झुंड परस्पर एक-दूसरेपर बारंबार चोट करते हुए इच्छानुसार विचरण करते हैं, वे कभी तो अपने प्रहारसे दूसरोंको कुचलते और मथते हुए आगे बढ़ जाते हैं और कभी स्वयं दूसरेकी चोट खाकर व्याकुल हो उठते हैं। इस प्रकार आपसमें लड़ते हुए वे थोड़े ही दिनोंमें नष्टप्राय हो जाते हैं, इसमें संदेह नहीं है। इसी तरह राजाके बिना वे सारी प्रजाएँ आपसमें लड़-झगड़कर बात-की-बातमें नष्ट हो जायँगी और बिना चरवाहेके पशुओंकी भाँति दुःखके घोर अन्धकारमें डूब जायँगी

Transliteration

yathā hānudaye rājan bhūtāni śaśisūryayoḥ | andhe tamasi majjeyur apaśyantaḥ parasparam ||

Translation

Vasumanā said: “O King, just as, when the moon and the sun do not rise, living beings sink into blinding darkness and cannot see one another, so too, without a ruler, the people fall into confusion. Deprived of guidance and restraint, they collide in mutual harm, and in a short time are driven toward ruin. Therefore kingship is set forth as a necessary support of social order: it prevents the strong from preying upon the weak and keeps the community from dissolving into suffering and disorder.”

Word by Word

यथाjust as

अनुदयेin the non-rising/absence of rising

राजन्O king

भूतानिcreatures, beings

शशि-सूर्ययोःof the moon and the sun

अन्धेin blind/dense

तमसिin darkness

मज्जेयुःwould sink, would be immersed

अपश्यन्तःnot seeing

परस्परम्each other

Speaker

वसुमना उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vasumanā

King (rājan)

Moon (śaśi)

Sun (sūrya)

Darkness (tamas)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Cross References

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse teaches that governance is a moral necessity for society: without the regulating presence of a king, people lose clarity and restraint, leading to mutual harm and rapid social collapse—like creatures lost in darkness without the sun and moon.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vasumanā addresses a king and uses a cosmic simile—no sunrise or moonrise causing total darkness—to illustrate the condition of a realm without a ruler, preparing the ground for a broader discussion of rājadharma (the duties and necessity of kingship).