Shloka 11

Cyavana’s Water-Vow and the Ethics of Cohabitation (स्नेह-सम्वास-धर्मः)

Devanagari script

लक्षण्यं गोवृषो यान॑ यत्‌ प्रधानतमं भवेत्‌ । ब्राह्माण्यास्तद्धरेत्‌ पुत्र एकांशं वै पितुर्धनात्‌

Transliteration

lakṣaṇyaṃ govṛṣo yānaṃ yat pradhānatamaṃ bhavet | brāhmaṇyās tad dharet putra ekāṃśaṃ vai pitur dhanāt ||

Translation

Bhīṣma dit : «Quel que soit, parmi les dons distinctifs, celui qu’on juge le plus éminent — une vache, un taureau ou un véhicule — que le fils mette de côté cet objet premier pour la femme brāhmaṇa (Brāhmaṇī), comme la part qui lui revient sur la fortune du père.»

Word by Word

• लक्षण्यं: mark/characteristic
• लक्षण्यं: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: लक्षण
• Form: Neuter, Nominative, Singular

• गोवृषः: a bull (lit. cow-bull)
• गोवृषः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: गोवृष
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• यः: who/which
• यः: Karta
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: यद्
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• यत्: that which
• यत्: Karta
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: यद्
• Form: Neuter, Nominative, Singular

• प्रधानतमं: most principal/most important
• प्रधानतमं: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: प्रधानतम
• Form: Neuter, Nominative, Singular

• भवेत्: should be/become
• Type: Verb
• Root: भू
• Form: Optative (Vidhi-lin), 3rd, Singular

• ब्राह्माण्याः: of a Brahmin woman
• Type: Noun
• Root: ब्राह्माणी
• Form: Feminine, Genitive, Singular

• तत्: that (thing)
• तत्: Karma
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: तद्
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular

• हरेत्: should take/should carry off
• Type: Verb
• Root: हृ
• Form: Optative (Vidhi-lin), 3rd, Singular

• पुत्रः: the son
• पुत्रः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: पुत्र
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• एकांशं: one share/one portion
• एकांशं: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: एकांश
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• वै: indeed
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: वै

• पितुः: of the father
• Type: Noun
• Root: पितृ
• Form: Masculine, Genitive, Singular

• धनात्: from the wealth/property
• धनात्: Apadana
• Type: Noun
• Root: धन
• Form: Neuter, Ablative, Singular

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Bhīṣma
• son (putra)
• Brāhmaṇa woman (brāhmaṇī)
• cow (go)
• bull (vṛṣa)
• vehicle/conveyance (yāna)
• father (pitṛ)
• wealth/property (dhana)