Shloka 25

Dharma-vyādha’s Analysis of Moral Decline and the Mahābhūta–Guṇa Schema (धर्मव्याधोपदेशः)

Devanagari script

आकल्प: परिचर्या च गात्रसंवाहनानि च । अन्नैकैकं नृपश्रेष्ठ गोदानाद्धयतिरिच्यते,नृपश्रेष्ठ! देवविग्रहोंपर चढ़े हुए चन्दन-पुष्प आदिको यथासमय उतारना, ब्राह्मणोंकी जूठन साफ करना, उन्हें चन्दन-माला आदिसे अलंकृत करना, उनकी सेवा-पूजा करना और उनके पैर आदि अंगोंको दबाना, इनमेंसे एक-एक कार्य गोदानसे भी अधिक महत्त्व रखता है

Transliteration

ākalpaḥ paricaryā ca gātrasaṃvāhanāni ca | annaikaikaṃ nṛpaśreṣṭha godānādd hy atiricyate ||

Translation

マールカンデーヤは言った。「人々の支配者よ、たとえ一つの行いであっても——心を尽くした身辺の奉仕、しかるべき世話、あるいは（尊ぶべき者の）肢体を揉みほぐすこと——それは牛を施す功徳をも凌ぐ。敬意をもって時宜にかなう謙虚な奉仕は、壮大な布施にも勝る。なぜなら、それはダルマを体現する者を直接に敬い、支えるからである。」

Word by Word

आकल्पःproper arrangement/attentive service (as prescribed)

परिचर्याattendance, service

चand

गात्रसंवाहनानिmassaging of the limbs

चand

अन्नैकैकम्each single (act) of food-giving (i.e., each one among these acts)

नृपश्रेष्ठO best of kings

गोदानात्than a gift of cows

हिindeed, for

अतिरिच्यतेis surpassed/exceeded

नृपश्रेष्ठO best of kings

Speaker

मार्कण्डेय उवाच

Characters & Entities

Mārkaṇḍeya

nṛpaśreṣṭha (the king addressed)

go-dāna (cow-gift)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

That humble, direct service—attending properly, caring for the body, and devoted personal assistance to the worthy—can yield greater spiritual merit than prestigious gifts like cow-donation, because it expresses reverence and sustains dharma in practice.

What is happening in the narrative?

Mārkaṇḍeya addresses a king and instructs him on comparative merit: he elevates concrete acts of service (paricaryā, saṃvāhana) above celebrated acts of charity (go-dāna), emphasizing lived devotion and ethical conduct.