Shloka 13

Aṣṭāvakra–Kahoda Upākhyāna: Śvetaketu’s Āśrama, Sarasvatī, and the Origin of Aṣṭāvakra

Devanagari script

गुरुलाघवमादाय धर्माधर्मविनिश्चये । यतो भूयांस्ततो राजन्‌ कुरुष्व धर्मनिश्चयम्‌,राजन! धर्म और अधर्मका निर्णय करते समय पुण्य और पापके गौरव-लाघवपर ही दृष्टि रखकर विचार कीजिये तथा जिसमें अधिक पुण्य हो उसीको आचरणमें लाने योग्य धर्म ठहराइये

Transliteration

gurulāghavam ādāya dharmādharmaviniścaye | yato bhūyāṁs tato rājan kuruṣva dharmaniścayam ||

Translation

ಓ ರಾಜನ್! ಧರ್ಮಾಧರ್ಮ ನಿರ್ಣಯಿಸುವಾಗ ಪುಣ್ಯ-ಪಾಪಗಳ ಗುರು-ಲಘುವನ್ನು ಆಧಾರವಾಗಿ ತೂಗಿ; ಯಾವ ದಾರಿಯಲ್ಲಿ ಪುಣ್ಯ ಹೆಚ್ಚು ಇದೆಯೋ ಅದನ್ನೇ ಧರ್ಮವೆಂದು ನಿಶ್ಚಯಿಸಿ ಆಚರಿಸು.

Word by Word

गुरुलाघवम्heaviness and lightness (relative weight/importance)

आदायhaving taken; considering

धर्माधर्मविनिश्चयेin the determination of dharma and adharma

यतःfrom which; wherefrom; inasmuch as

भूयान्greater; more (in amount/merit)

ततःtherefore; from that (side)

राजन्O king

कुरुष्वdo; make; decide

धर्मनिश्चयम्a determination/decision of dharma

Speaker

श्येन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Śyena (the hawk, speaker)

Rājan (the king, addressee)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

When faced with competing options that mix right and wrong, one should judge by comparative moral weight: choose and enact the course in which dharma (merit) is greater and adharma (sin) is lesser.

What is happening in the narrative?

Śyena (the hawk) addresses a king and offers a principle for ethical judgment: in deciding between dharma and adharma, the ruler should weigh consequences and adopt the option that yields the greater good/merit.