Shloka 8

Devanagari script

अष्टावेव समासेन विवाहा धर्मत:ः स्मृता: । ब्राह्मो दैवस्तथैवार्ष: प्राजापत्यस्तथासुर:,धर्मशास्त्रकी दृष्टिसे संक्षेपसे आठ प्रकारके ही विवाह माने गये हैं--ब्राह्म, दैव, आर्ष, प्राजापत्य, आसुर, गान्धर्व, राक्षस तथा आठवाँ पैशाच।- स्वायम्भुव मनुका कथन है कि इनमें बादवालोंकी अपेक्षा पहलेवाले विवाह धर्मानुकूल हैं

Transliteration

aṣṭāveva samāsena vivāhā dharmataḥ smṛtāḥ | brāhmo daivastathaivārṣaḥ prājāpatyastathāsuraḥ ||

Translation

Duṣyanta said: “In brief, the tradition of Dharma recognizes eight forms of marriage: the Brāhma, the Daiva, the Ārṣa, the Prājāpatya, and the Āsura (and, by implication, the remaining three—Gāndharva, Rākṣasa, and Paiśāca).” The statement frames marriage as a moral institution governed by śāstric classification, where some forms are held to be more aligned with dharma than others.

Word by Word

• {'aṣṭa': 'eight', 'eva': 'indeed

• only', 'samāsena': 'briefly

• in summary', 'vivāhāḥ': 'marriages

• forms of marriage', 'dharmataḥ': 'according to dharma

• from the standpoint of righteousness/law', 'smṛtāḥ': 'are remembered/recorded (in Smṛti tradition)

• are traditionally taught', 'brāhmaḥ': 'Brāhma marriage (gift of the bride to a worthy man, without bride-price)', 'daivaḥ': 'Daiva marriage (giving the bride to a priest in connection with a sacrifice)', 'ārṣaḥ': 'Ārṣa marriage (marriage with a token gift such as cattle, associated with ṛṣi-tradition)', 'prājāpatyaḥ': 'Prājāpatya marriage (giving the bride with a blessing for joint dharmic household life)', 'āsuraḥ': 'Āsura marriage (marriage involving payment/wealth given to the bride’s family)'}

Speaker

दुष्यन्त उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Duṣyanta

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse teaches that marriage is not a single undifferentiated act but is ethically evaluated in dharma-śāstra through recognized categories; the tradition remembers eight forms, implying a hierarchy of moral acceptability.

What is happening in the narrative?

Duṣyanta is speaking in a didactic mode, invoking dharma-tradition to classify forms of marriage, setting a normative framework for discussing marital legitimacy and conduct.