Shloka 28

Purohita-Niyoga and the Brahma–Kṣatra Concord

Aila–Kaśyapa Saṃvāda

Devanagari script

मिथोभेदाद्‌ ब्राह्मणक्षत्रियाणां प्रजा दुःखं दुःसहं चाविशन्ति । एवं ज्ञात्वा कार्य एवेह नित्यं पुरोहितो नैकविद्यो नृपेण

Transliteration

mithobhedād brāhmaṇakṣatriyāṇāṁ prajā duḥkhaṁ duḥsahaṁ cāviśanti | evaṁ jñātvā kārya eveha nityaṁ purohito naikavidyo nṛpeṇa ||

Translation

Kāśyapa berkata: “Bila Brahmana dan Kṣatriya terpecah dalam perselisihan, rakyat diliputi penderitaan—penderitaan yang sukar ditanggung. Mengetahui hal ini, seorang raja hendaknya senantiasa menjadikannya kewajiban tetap: mengangkat seorang purohita yang berilmu luas, cakap dalam banyak cabang pengetahuan, untuk menuntun dan meneguhkan negeri.”

Word by Word

• {'mithas': 'mutually, with one another', 'bheda': 'division, split, discord', 'mithobhedāt': 'because of mutual discord', 'brāhmaṇa': 'Brahmin

• priestly/teaching class', 'kṣatriya': 'Kshatriya

• ruling/warrior class', 'brāhmaṇakṣatriyāṇām': 'of Brahmins and Kshatriyas', 'prajā': 'the people, subjects', 'duḥkha': 'sorrow, suffering', 'duḥsaha': 'hard to bear, unbearable', 'āviśanti': 'enter into, overwhelm, pervade', 'evaṁ': 'thus, in this manner', 'jñātvā': 'having known/understood', 'kārya': 'what must be done

• necessary act', 'eva': 'indeed, certainly', 'iha': 'here (in this world/kingdom)', 'nityam': 'always, continually', 'purohita': 'royal chaplain/priest

• counsellor in dharma and rites', 'naikavidyaḥ': 'skilled in many knowledges/disciplines', 'nṛpeṇa': 'by the king'}

Speaker

कश्यप उवाच

Characters & Entities

• कश्यप (Kāśyapa)
• ब्राह्मण (Brāhmaṇa)
• क्षत्रिय (Kṣatriya)
• प्रजा (subjects/people)
• नृप (king)
• पुरोहित (purohita)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Social order and public welfare depend on harmony between the guiding religious-intellectual authority (Brāhmaṇa) and the ruling power (Kṣatriya). Their discord directly harms the people; therefore a king must secure steady dharmic guidance by appointing a virtuous, broadly learned purohita.

What is happening in the narrative?

In Śānti Parva’s instruction on governance, Kāśyapa warns about the political and ethical consequences of conflict between Brahmins and Kshatriyas and advises the king to maintain a competent, multi-skilled royal priest-counsellor to prevent such breakdown and protect the subjects.