Shloka 43
Aśmagīta: Janaka’s Inquiry on Loss, Kāla, and the Limits of Control (अश्मगीता)
कुर्वीत पितृदैवत्यं धर्माणि च समाचरेत् । यजेच्च विद्वान् विधिवत त्रिवर्ग चाप्युपाचरेत्,विज्ञ पुरुष पितरोंका श्राद्ध और देवताओंका यजन करे। धर्मानुकूल कार्योंका अनुष्ठान और यज्ञ करे तथा विधिपूर्वक धर्म, अर्थ और कामका भी सेवन करे
kurvīta pitṛdaivatyaṁ dharmāṇi ca samācaret | yajec ca vidvān vidhivat trivargaṁ cāpy upācaret ||
Janaka berkata: Hendaknya orang bijak menunaikan śrāddha bagi para leluhur dan melakukan pemujaan (yajana) bagi para dewa. Hendaknya ia menjalankan kewajiban-kewajiban yang selaras dengan dharma, mempersembahkan yajña menurut tata aturan; dan juga menempuh tiga tujuan hidup—dharma, artha, dan kāma—secara tertib dan sah.
जनक उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches a balanced, rule-governed life: honor ancestors and gods through prescribed rites, practice dharma in conduct, and pursue artha and kāma only within the boundaries set by dharma (the trivarga pursued in harmony).
In the Śānti Parva’s instruction on righteous living, King Janaka speaks as a moral teacher, advising how a wise person—especially in worldly life—should combine ritual obligations (to Pitṛs and Devas) with ethical conduct and the measured pursuit of life’s goals.