Mahabharata — Anushasana Parva, Shloka 473

Devanagari script

प्रजापति सार्वभौम॑ कीर्तयेद्‌ वसुधाधिपम्‌ । इनका नाम लेनेवाले मनुष्यके धर्म

Transliteration

bhīṣma uvāca | prajāpatiṃ sārvabhaumaṃ kīrtayed vasudhādhipam | tasya nāma-grahaṇāt puṃsāṃ dharma-artha-kāma-siddhir bhavati | venakumāraṃ nṛpaśreṣṭhaṃ pṛthuṃ kīrtayitavyaṃ yasya iyaṃ pṛthivī putrībhūtā prajāpatiś ca sārvabhauma-samrāṭ ca |

Translation

Dijo Bhishma: “Debe celebrarse y recitarse la alabanza de aquel soberano señor de la tierra, que fue también un Prajapati. Al pronunciar su nombre, los hombres alcanzan la realización del dharma, del artha (prosperidad) y del kama (goce legítimo). Por ello ha de ensalzarse a Prithu, el mejor de los reyes, hijo de Vena: aquel para quien esta misma Tierra se volvió como una hija, y que se alzó como Prajapati y emperador universal.”

Word by Word

• प्रजापतिम्: Prajāpati (lord of creatures)
• प्रजापतिम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: प्रजापति
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• सार्वभौमम्: universal sovereign
• सार्वभौमम्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सार्वभौम
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• कीर्तयेत्: should praise/recite
• कीर्तयेत्: Karta
• Type: Verb
• Root: कीर्तय् (कीर्तयति)
• Form: Optative (Vidhi-lin), 3rd, Singular, Parasmaipada

• वसुधा-अधिपम्: lord of the earth
• वसुधा-अधिपम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: वसुधाधिप
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Bhishma
• Prajapati
• Prithu
• Vena
• Prithivi (Earth)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Bhishma teaches that remembering and praising an exemplary, dharma-rooted sovereign—Prithu—brings integrated human flourishing: moral excellence (dharma), material stability (artha), and rightful enjoyment (kama). The verse links ethical kingship with spiritual merit through name-recitation and celebration of virtuous fame.

What is happening in the narrative?

In Bhishma’s instruction to Yudhishthira within the Anushasana Parva, he recommends the kirtana (praise/recitation) of King Prithu, son of Vena, describing him as a universal emperor and Prajapati, and noting the mythic motif that Earth became as his daughter—signifying his protective, nurturing rule over the world.