Shloka 7
उद्योगपर्व — अध्याय २५: संजयदूतवाक्यम्
Sañjaya’s Envoy-Speech on Peace
नाश्रेयानीश्वरो विग्रहाणां नाश्रेयान् वै गीतशब्दं शृणोति । नाश्रेयान् वै सेवते माल्यगन्धान् न चाप्यश्रेयाननुलेपनानि
sañjaya uvāca | nāśreyān īśvaro vigrahāṇāṃ nāśreyān vai gītaśabdaṃ śṛṇoti | nāśreyān vai sevate mālyagandhān na cāpy aśreyān anulepanāni |
Sañjaya said: “One who lacks merit does not become a true master in conflicts; nor does he hear the sound of songs sung in his praise. Without accumulated virtue, one does not enjoy garlands and perfumes, nor even the use of unguents. In this way, prosperity and honor are portrayed as fruits of past righteousness, while craving for enjoyment—when ungoverned by wisdom—becomes a source of inner torment.”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse links honor, mastery, and refined enjoyments to accumulated merit (puṇya/śreyas), implying that ethical conduct and past righteousness underpin worldly prosperity; without such merit, pleasures and acclaim do not truly accrue.
Sañjaya is characterizing the conditions for royal success and enjoyment, using a series of negations to stress that lack of merit leads to lack of victory, praise, and luxuries—framing the broader political crisis in terms of moral causality.