Shloka 8

Duḥṣantasya Vana-praveśaḥ

King Duḥṣanta’s Entry into the Forest Hunt

Devanagari script

पशव्यश्रैव पुण्यश्च प्रभूतधनधान्यवान्‌ । स्वारक्ष्यश्चैव सौम्यश्न भोग्यैर्भूमिगुणैर्युत:

Transliteration

vaishampāyana uvāca | paśavyāś caiva puṇyaś ca prabhūtadhana-dhānyavān | svārakṣyaś caiva saumyaś ca bhogyair bhūmi-guṇair yutaḥ ||

Translation

Vaiśampāyana said: He was rich in cattle and also virtuous; he possessed abundant wealth and grain. He was capable of protecting his own realm, gentle in disposition, and endowed with the land’s enjoyments and natural excellences—resources fit to be rightly used and safeguarded.

Word by Word

पशव्यःrich in cattle

चand

एवindeed

पुण्यःvirtuous; meritorious

चand

प्रभूत-धन-धान्यवान्possessing abundant wealth and grain

स्व-रक्ष्यःself-protected; easy to defend

चand

एवindeed

सौम्यःgentle; pleasant

चand

भोग्यैःenjoyable; fit to be enjoyed (by)

भूमि-गुणैःwith the qualities of the land

युतःendowed (with); possessed of

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vaiśampāyana

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Cross References

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Prosperity is presented as ethically grounded: true excellence includes virtue (puṇya), the capacity to protect one’s realm (svārakṣya), gentleness (saumya), and the responsible enjoyment and stewardship of the land’s resources (bhūmi-guṇa).

What is happening in the narrative?

Vaiśampāyana describes a figure’s qualities—material abundance (cattle, wealth, grain) together with moral and administrative fitness (virtue, self-protection, gentleness), portraying an idealized condition of a well-endowed and well-governed domain.