Shloka 11

Devanagari script

स चापि शक्रस्य समप्रभावो महानुभाव: समरेष्वजेय: । विहाय भोगानचरद्‌ वनेषु नेशे बलस्येति चरेदधर्मम्‌,जो इन्द्रके समान प्रभावशाली थे, जिनका अनुभव महान्‌ था तथा जो युद्धमें सर्वदा अजेय थे, उन्होंने भी सम्पूर्ण भोगोंका परित्याग करके वनमें निवास किया था। इसलिये अपनेको बलका स्वामी समझकर अधर्म नहीं करना चाहिये

Transliteration

sa cāpi śakrasya samaprabhāvo mahānubhāvaḥ samareṣv ajeyaḥ | vihāya bhogān acaradvaneṣu neśe balasyeti ca cared adharmaṃ ||

Translation

Markandeya said: “Even he—equal in splendor to Indra, of great stature and experience, and unconquerable in battles—renounced enjoyments and lived in the forests. Therefore, one should not commit unrighteousness, thinking, ‘I am the lord of strength.’”

Word by Word

{'saḥ''he', 'cāpi': 'and also, even', 'śakrasya': 'of Śakra (Indra)', 'samaprabhāvaḥ': 'of equal radiance/power

comparable in might', 'mahānubhāvaḥ''great-souled

of great eminence/experience', 'samareṣu''in battles', 'ajeyaḥ': 'unconquerable

not to be defeated', 'vihāya''having abandoned

renouncing', 'bhogān''enjoyments

worldly luxuries', 'acarad''he practiced

he lived/moved about', 'vaneṣu''in forests', 'na': 'not', 'īśe': 'one should rule/claim mastery

(here) ‘should (not) think oneself master’', 'balasya''of strength/power', 'iti': 'thus

thinking ‘…’', 'ca''and', 'cared': 'one should practice/do', 'adharmam': 'unrighteousness

Speaker

मार्कण्डेय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Mārkaṇḍeya

Śakra (Indra)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Power and martial superiority do not justify wrongdoing. Even a person comparable to Indra, undefeated in war, chose restraint and renunciation; therefore one must not commit adharma under the prideful notion of being ‘master of strength.’

What is happening in the narrative?

Mārkaṇḍeya is instructing his listener through an exemplum: he points to a mighty, Indra-like figure who abandoned pleasures and lived in the forest, using this as a moral warning against arrogance and abuse of power.