Shloka 7

Adhyaya 27 — Madālasa’s Instruction to King Alarka: Royal Ethics, Self-Conquest, and Statecraft

Sanskrit

दुष्टादुष्टांश्च जानीयादमात्यानरिदोषतः ।

चरैश्चरास्तथा शत्रोरन्वेष्टव्याः प्रयत्नतः ॥

Transliteration

duṣṭāduṣṭāṃś ca jānīyād amātyān aridoṣataḥ /

caraiś carās tathā śatror anveṣṭavyāḥ prayatnataḥ

Translation

Dengan memperhatikan kelemahan musuh (dan bagaimana hal itu ditangani), hendaknya ia membedakan menteri yang korup dan yang tidak. Demikian pula, melalui mata-mata, mata-mata musuh harus dicari dengan sungguh-sungguh.

Word by Word

• duṣṭa-aduṣṭān: bad and good
• duṣṭa-aduṣṭān: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: duṣṭa (प्रातिपदिक) + a-duṣṭa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Plural (बहुवचन); द्वन्द्व: 'bad and not-bad (good)' qualifying amātyān

• ca: and
• ca: Samuccaya-dyotaka (समुच्चय-द्योतक)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya (अव्यय), conjunction

• jānīyāt: should know/ascertain
• jānīyāt: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: jñā (धातु)
• Form: Optative/vidhiliṅ (विधिलिङ्), Parasmaipada (परस्मैपद), 3rd person (प्रथमपुरुष), Singular (एकवचन)

• amātyān: ministers
• amātyān: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: amātya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Plural (बहुवचन)

• ari-doṣataḥ: from (their) enemy-related faults
• ari-doṣataḥ: Hetu (हेतु)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ari (प्रातिपदिक) + doṣa (प्रातिपदिक) + tas (तसिल् प्रत्यय)
• Form: Avyaya (अव्यय), ablatival adverb (तसिल्); तत्पुरुष: 'fault of enemies' → 'from/through enemy-fault (i.e., by their defects/hostility)'

• caraiḥ: by spies
• caraiḥ: Karaṇa (करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: cara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Instrumental (3rd/तृतीया), Plural (बहुवचन)

• carāḥ: spies
• carāḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: cara (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Plural (बहुवचन)

• tathā: likewise
• tathā: Sambandha-dyotaka (सम्बन्ध-द्योतक)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tathā (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya (अव्यय), correlative particle

• śatroḥ: of the enemy
• śatroḥ: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śatru (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Genitive (6th/षष्ठी), Singular (एकवचन)

• anveṣṭavyāḥ: are to be sent to search / should investigate
• anveṣṭavyāḥ: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: anu-√iṣ/√eṣ (धातु: anveṣ) + tavya (कृत् प्रत्यय)
• Form: Gerundive/obligative (तव्यत्-कृदन्त), Feminine (स्त्रीलिङ्ग), Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Plural (बहुवचन); agrees with carāḥ

• prayatnataḥ: diligently
• prayatnataḥ: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: prayatna (प्रातिपदिक) + tas (तसिल् प्रत्यय)
• Form: Avyaya (अव्यय), ablatival adverb (तसिल्): 'with effort, diligently'

Speakers

• Didactic instruction within the Markandeya Purana’s nīti/rājadharma discourse (speaker not specified in the provided excerpt)

Verse Rasa

{ "primaryRasa": "vira", "secondaryRasa": "shanta", "rasaIntensity": 0, "emotionalArcPosition": "", "moodDescriptors": [] }

Key Themes

• Dharma
• Kingship
• Statecraft
• Espionage
• Ministerial Integrity

FAQs

What is the philosophical or ethical takeaway?

A ruler must combine trust with verification: integrity in governance is protected by careful assessment of advisors and by awareness of hostile intelligence networks.

How does this fit the Pancalakshana (5 characteristics)?

Ancillary rājadharma teaching; not a pancalakṣaṇa unit (not sarga/pratisarga/vaṃśa/manvantara/vaṃśānucarita).

What is the esoteric significance?

‘Spies’ can symbolize the mind’s investigative faculties: one must detect ‘foreign agents’—intrusive thoughts and habits—before they sabotage inner sovereignty.