Shloka 473

Devanagari script

प्रजापति सार्वभौम॑ कीर्तयेद्‌ वसुधाधिपम्‌ । इनका नाम लेनेवाले मनुष्यके धर्म

Transliteration

bhīṣma uvāca | prajāpatiṃ sārvabhaumaṃ kīrtayed vasudhādhipam | tasya nāma-grahaṇāt puṃsāṃ dharma-artha-kāma-siddhir bhavati | venakumāraṃ nṛpaśreṣṭhaṃ pṛthuṃ kīrtayitavyaṃ yasya iyaṃ pṛthivī putrībhūtā prajāpatiś ca sārvabhauma-samrāṭ ca |

Translation

Bhishma berkata: Hendaknya orang melantunkan pujian dan menyebut kemasyhuran sang penguasa bumi yang juga seorang Prajapati dan maharaja universal. Dengan menyebut namanya, manusia meraih keberhasilan dalam dharma, artha, dan kama. Karena itu, pujilah Prithu, raja terbaik, putra Vena—dia yang membuat Bumi ini menjadi laksana putrinya, dan yang berdiri sebagai Prajapati serta maharaja semesta.

Word by Word

• प्रजापतिम्: Prajāpati (lord of creatures)
• प्रजापतिम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: प्रजापति
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• सार्वभौमम्: universal sovereign
• सार्वभौमम्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सार्वभौम
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• कीर्तयेत्: should praise/recite
• कीर्तयेत्: Karta
• Type: Verb
• Root: कीर्तय् (कीर्तयति)
• Form: Optative (Vidhi-lin), 3rd, Singular, Parasmaipada

• वसुधा-अधिपम्: lord of the earth
• वसुधा-अधिपम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: वसुधाधिप
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Bhishma
• Prajapati
• Prithu
• Vena
• Prithivi (Earth)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Bhishma teaches that remembering and praising an exemplary, dharma-rooted sovereign—Prithu—brings integrated human flourishing: moral excellence (dharma), material stability (artha), and rightful enjoyment (kama). The verse links ethical kingship with spiritual merit through name-recitation and celebration of virtuous fame.

What is happening in the narrative?

In Bhishma’s instruction to Yudhishthira within the Anushasana Parva, he recommends the kirtana (praise/recitation) of King Prithu, son of Vena, describing him as a universal emperor and Prajapati, and noting the mythic motif that Earth became as his daughter—signifying his protective, nurturing rule over the world.