Adhyakshaprachara Adhyaya 14 Sutra 31 - Arthashastra | Hindi | Vedapath

Kautilya

Sutra 31

Devanagari script

शुल्बरूपं सुवर्णपत्त्रसंहतं प्रमृष्टं सुपार्श्वम् तदेव यमकपत्त्रसंहतं प्रमृष्टं ताम्रताररुपं चोत्तरवर्णकः ॥ कZ_०२.१४.३१ ॥

Transliteration

śulbarūpaṃ suvarṇapattrasaṃhataṃ pramṛṣṭaṃ supārśvam tadeva yamakapattrasaṃhataṃ pramṛṣṭaṃ tāmratārarupaṃ cottaravarṇakaḥ

Translation

ताँबे के रूप का टुकड़ा, जिस पर सुवर्ण-पत्त्र की परत चढ़ी हो, जो पॉलिश किया गया हो और जिसके पार्श्व अच्छे बने हों; इसी प्रकार दोहरे पत्त्र से परतित और पॉलिश किया हुआ; तथा ताँबे-तार के रूप वाला—ये सब ‘उत्तरवर्णक’ (उच्च-वर्ण/उत्तम रंग वाले) कहलाते हैं।

Word by Word

शुल्बरूपम्(having) the form/standard of base metal (copper/bronze)

सुवर्णपत्त्रसंहतम्laminated/covered with gold leaf

प्रमृष्टम्rubbed/polished (burnished)

सुपार्श्वम्having good/even sides

तत्that (same object)

एवindeed/just

यमकपत्त्रसंहतम्laminated with double leaf (two-layer plating)

प्रमृष्टम्rubbed/polished

ताम्रताररूपम्having the appearance/colour of copper wire

चand

उत्तरवर्णकः(it is) of the higher/superior colour-grade

Entities Mentioned

copper form

gold leaf laminate

double leaf

polishing

copper wire

FAQs

What does ‘uttaravarṇaka’ convey administratively?

That fraudsters engineer superior-looking color/finish to pass visual grading—so governance must not rely on hue/polish as proof of value.

What inspection weakness is targeted?

Overreliance on surface finish and edge quality; the passage warns that excellent workmanship can still conceal base-metal interiors.