Shloka 40

अनुशासनपर्व अध्याय ९३ — तपस्, सदोपवास, विघसाशन, अतिथिप्रियता

Austerity, regulated fasting, residual-eating, and hospitality

Devanagari script

तस्मात्‌ सर्वप्रयत्नेन परीक्ष्यामन्त्रयेद्‌ द्विजान्‌ू

Transliteration

tasmāt sarvaprayatnena parīkṣyāmantrayed dvijān

Translation

Por lo tanto, con todo empeño, tras examinarlos y evaluarlos primero, debe uno consultar a los “dos veces nacidos” (dvija), los brahmanes eruditos.

Word by Word

• तस्मात्: therefore/from that
• तस्मात्: Apadana
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: तद्
• Form: Masculine/Neuter, Ablative, Singular

• सर्वप्रयत्नेन: with all effort/with utmost effort
• सर्वप्रयत्नेन: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: सर्वप्रयत्न
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Singular

• परीक्ष्य: having examined
• Type: Verb
• Root: परि-ईक्ष्
• Form: क्त्वा (absolutive/gerund), Parasmaipada (usage)

• मन्त्रयेत्: should consult/should take counsel
• Type: Verb
• Root: मन्त्रय्
• Form: Optative (Vidhi-lin), 3rd, Singular, Parasmaipada

• द्विजान्: Brahmins/twice-born (men)
• द्विजान्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: द्विज
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Plural

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Bhīṣma
• dvijāḥ (twice-born/Brahmins)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Before relying on religious or learned advisers, one should carefully examine their character and competence; only then should one seek their counsel, doing so with full diligence.

What is happening in the narrative?

Bhīṣma, instructing on dharma and proper conduct, advises the listener (contextually Yudhiṣṭhira) that counsel should be taken from qualified, tested dvijas rather than indiscriminately.