Shloka 18

Devanagari script

तदेष तपसां शत्रु: श्रेयसां विनिपातक: । निगृहीतो मया रोष: श्र॒ुत्वैवं वचनं॑ तव,इसलिये आज तुम्हारी बात सुनकर ही तपस्याके शत्रु और कल्याणमार्गसे भ्रष्ट करनेवाले इस क्रोधको मैंने काबूमें कर लिया है

Transliteration

tadeṣa tapasāṁ śatruḥ śreyasāṁ vinipātakaḥ | nigṛhīto mayā roṣaḥ śrutvaivaṁ vacanaṁ tava ||

Translation

«Cette colère est l’ennemie de l’ascèse et la cause de la chute hors du chemin du vrai bien. Pourtant, en entendant tes paroles ainsi prononcées, j’ai contenu ma fureur.»

Word by Word

तत्that (anger)

एषःthis

तपसाम्of austerities

शत्रुःenemy

श्रेयसाम्of welfare/true good

विनिपातकःone who causes downfall

निगृहीतःrestrained/controlled

मयाby me

रोषःanger

श्रुत्वाhaving heard

एवम्thus/in this manner

वचनम्speech/words

तवof you/your

Speaker

नाग उवाच

Characters & Entities

Nāga (speaker)

roṣa (anger, personified as a force)

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Anger (roṣa/krodha) destroys ascetic discipline (tapas) and causes one to fall from śreyas—the path of true and lasting good. Ethical speech and wise counsel can help restrain anger, making self-mastery a central dharmic virtue.

What is happening in the narrative?

The Nāga speaker acknowledges that anger had arisen, recognizes it as spiritually harmful, and states that hearing the other person’s words has enabled him to subdue that anger—signaling a turn from impulsive reaction toward disciplined restraint.