Shloka 65

तृष्णाक्षय-उपदेशः

Instruction on the Cessation of Craving

Devanagari script

इदं तु दुष्करं कर्म कुटुम्बमभिसंश्रितम्‌ । दानमध्ययनं यज्ञ: प्रजासंतानमार्जवम्‌

Transliteration

idaṃ tu duṣkaraṃ karma kuṭumbam abhisaṃśritam | dānam adhyayanaṃ yajñaḥ prajā-santānam ārjavam ||

Translation

Kapila dit : «Pourtant, voici une discipline difficile : la vie ancrée dans le foyer. Les devoirs du don, de l’étude de soi (svādhyāya), du sacrifice (yajña), d’engendrer et de soutenir la descendance, et de garder la droiture (une intégrité douce) dans sa conduite — tout cela est d’une extrême difficulté pour l’homme.»

Word by Word

• [{'term': 'idaṃ', 'definition': 'this (the following teaching/duty)'}, {'term': 'tu', 'definition': 'however

• but (marks contrast/emphasis)'}, {'term': 'duṣkaram', 'definition': 'difficult to do

• hard to accomplish'}, {'term': 'karma', 'definition': 'duty

• disciplined practice'}, {'term': 'kuṭumbam', 'definition': 'household

• dependents'}, {'term': 'abhisaṃśritam', 'definition': 'resorted to

• grounded in'}, {'term': 'dānam', 'definition': 'giving

• generosity'}, {'term': 'adhyayanam', 'definition': 'study (especially Vedic/self-study)

• recitation and learning'}, {'term': 'yajñaḥ', 'definition': 'sacrifice

• sacred duty performed for order and welfare'}, {'term': 'prajā-santānam', 'definition': 'progeny and continuity of the family line

• begetting/raising children'}, {'term': 'ārjavam', 'definition': 'straightforwardness

Speaker

कपिल उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Kapila

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Kapila emphasizes that the householder path is not spiritually inferior but practically demanding: sustaining a family while also fulfilling generosity, disciplined study, sacrificial responsibility, raising progeny, and maintaining honest, gentle integrity is exceptionally hard.

What is happening in the narrative?

In Śānti Parva’s instructional dialogue, Kapila is explaining dharma by evaluating life-paths (āśramas). Here he highlights the weight of gṛhastha obligations—both social and spiritual—showing why household life requires great steadiness and virtue.