Shloka 18

Bṛhaspati’s Counsel on Contentment

Santoṣa), Restraint, and Adroha (Non-injury

Devanagari script

एवं धर्ममनुक्रान्ता: सत्यदानतप:परा: । आनुृशंस्यगुणैर्युक्ता: कामक्रोधविवर्जिता:,इस प्रकार धर्मका अनुसरण करनेवाले, सत्य, दान और तपमें संलग्न रहनेवाले, दया आदि गुणोंसे युक्त, काम-क्रोध आदि दोषोंसे रहित, प्रजापालन-परायण, उत्तम धर्मसेवी तथा गौओं और ब्राह्मणोंकी रक्षाके लिये युद्ध करनेवाले नरेशोंने परम उत्तम गति प्राप्त की है

Transliteration

evaṁ dharmam anukrāntāḥ satya-dāna-tapaḥ-parāḥ | ānṛśaṁsya-guṇair yuktāḥ kāma-krodha-vivarjitāḥ ||

Translation

Ainsi, les rois qui marchèrent sur la voie du dharma —voués à la vérité, au don et à l’austérité; pourvus de vertus telles que la compassion; et exempts de fautes comme le désir et la colère— atteignirent l’état le plus haut et le plus excellent. Leur règne était tourné vers la protection des sujets et le service de la juste conduite, et ils étaient prêts à combattre pour sauvegarder les vaches et les brahmanes, tenant cette protection pour un devoir essentiel de la royauté.

Word by Word

एवम्thus

धर्मम्dharma, righteousness

अनुक्रान्ताःhaving followed

सत्यtruth (in truthfulness)

दानgiving, charity

तपःausterity

पराःdevoted, intent on

आनृशंस्यcompassion, non-cruelty

गुणैःwith qualities

युक्ताःendowed, possessed of

कामdesire

क्रोधanger

विवर्जिताःfree from, devoid of

Speaker

देवस्थान उवाच

Characters & Entities

Devastāna (speaker)

kings (nareśāḥ, implied)

cows (gauḥ, implied by the prose gloss)

Brahmins (brāhmaṇāḥ, implied by the prose gloss)

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse teaches that rulers who consistently follow dharma—grounded in truth, generosity, and disciplined austerity—while cultivating compassion and restraining desire and anger, attain the highest spiritual outcome. Ethical self-mastery and benevolent governance are presented as inseparable from true kingship.

What is happening in the narrative?

Devastāna is describing the qualities and conduct of exemplary kings. He states that such rulers, committed to righteous governance and willing to defend key pillars of social-religious order (notably Brahmins and cows), achieve an excellent final state (gati), highlighting the fruits of rajadharma.