Shloka 29

Treasury Security, Protection of Informants, and the Kalakavṛkṣīya Exemplum (Śānti Parva 83)

Devanagari script

आशीविषमिव क्ुद्धं प्रभुं प्राणधनेश्वरम्‌ । यत्नेनोपचरेन्नित्यं नाहमस्मीति मानव:

Transliteration

āśīviṣam iva kruddhaṃ prabhuṃ prāṇadhaneśvaram | yatnenopacaren nityaṃ nāham asmīti mānavaḥ ||

Translation

Bhishma said: A king is the master of a man’s life and wealth. When angered, he becomes terrifying like a venomous serpent. Therefore a person should serve the king constantly with great care—acting as though, “I do not count my own life,” that is, placing his life in his own hands and proceeding with vigilant self-restraint.

Word by Word

• {'āśīviṣaḥ': 'a venomous serpent', 'iva': 'like, as', 'kruddham': 'angered, wrathful', 'prabhum': 'lord, powerful master', 'prāṇa': 'life-breath

• life', 'dhana': 'wealth, property', 'īśvara / -eśvara': 'lord, master', 'prāṇadhaneśvaram': 'one who is master over life and wealth (here: the king)', 'yatnena': 'with effort, carefully, diligently', 'upacaret': 'should attend upon

• should approach respectfully', 'nityam': 'always, constantly', 'na aham asmi iti': '‘I am not (i.e., my life is as nothing)’—a stance of extreme caution/self-effacement', 'mānavaḥ': 'a human being, person'}

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Bhishma
• king (rājā)
• venomous serpent (āśīviṣa)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse warns about the dangerous volatility of royal power: since a king can affect one’s life and property, one should act with disciplined caution and respectful diligence, restraining ego and avoiding provocations.

What is happening in the narrative?

In the Shanti Parva’s instruction on rājadharma, Bhishma advises Yudhishthira about how subjects and attendants should conduct themselves toward a ruler, using the simile of an enraged venomous serpent to stress the need for careful service.