Shloka 120

आपद्धर्मनिर्णयः — विश्वामित्र-श्वपचसंवादः

Apaddharma Determination: Dialogue of Viśvāmitra and the Śvapaca

Devanagari script

कार्यार्थे कृतसंधानौ दृष्टवा मार्जारमूषिकौ

Transliteration

kāryārthe kṛtasandhānau dṛṣṭvā mārjāramūṣikau

Translation

Melihat seekor kucing dan tikus yang telah membuat kesepahaman demi menuntaskan suatu tugas, Bhīṣma menegaskan: bahkan musuh alami pun dapat bersatu sementara ketika digerakkan oleh tujuan yang sama; namun ikatan semacam itu menuntut kehati-hatian dan kebijaksanaan dalam bertindak.

Word by Word

• कार्यार्थे: for the sake of a task / in the matter of an objective
• कार्यार्थे: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: कार्यार्थ
• Form: Masculine, Locative, Singular

• कृतसंधानौ: having made an alliance / having formed a pact
• कृतसंधानौ: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: कृतसंधान
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Dual

• दृष्ट्वा: having seen
• Type: Verb
• Root: दृश्
• Form: Absolutive (Gerund)

• मार्जारमूषिकौ: the cat and the mouse
• मार्जारमूषिकौ: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: मार्जारमूषिक
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Dual

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Bhīṣma
• cat (mārjāra)
• mouse (mūṣika)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Even hostile parties may enter a temporary alliance to achieve a shared goal; dharma requires discernment—understanding motive, limits of trust, and the risks of convenience-based friendship.

What is happening in the narrative?

Bhīṣma introduces an illustrative scene: a cat and a mouse are observed to have made a pact for a specific purpose, setting up a moral reflection on strategic cooperation and the dangers of alliances between natural adversaries.