Shloka 53
Adhyaya 7 — Harishchandra Tested by Vishvamitra: The Gift of the Kingdom and the Pandava Curse-Backstory
आनृशंस्यं परो धर्मः क्षत्रियाणां विशेषतः ।
किं दारैः किं सुतैर्नाथ धनैर्धान्यैरथापि वा ॥
ānṛśaṃsyaṃ paro dharmaḥ kṣatriyāṇāṃ viśeṣataḥ / kiṃ dāraiḥ kiṃ sutair nātha dhanair dhānyair athāpi vā
ಅಹಿಂಸೆ (ಕರುಣಾಮಯ ಸಂಯಮ) ಪರಮ ಧರ್ಮ—ವಿಶೇಷವಾಗಿ ಕ್ಷತ್ರಿಯರಿಗೆ. ಪ್ರಭು, ಆ ಧರ್ಮವನ್ನು ತ್ಯಜಿಸಿದರೆ ಹೆಂಡತಿಗಳಿಂದ ಏನು, ಪುತ್ರರಿಂದ ಏನು, ಧನಧಾನ್ಯಗಳಿಂದಲೂ ಏನು ಪ್ರಯೋಜನ?
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FAQs
The verse asserts that the warrior-ruler’s true excellence is not mere valor but compassionate restraint. For a kṣatriya—who holds power over life, punishment, and protection—ānṛśaṃsya (non-cruel, humane conduct) is proclaimed the supreme duty. The rhetorical dismissal of wife, children, wealth, and grain underscores that social status and prosperity are hollow if dharma is violated; protection and governance must be rooted in mercy and justice rather than brutality.
This verse aligns most closely with "Vaṃśānucarita" in the broad sense of social-ethical norms tied to the kṣatriya role within dynastic life, and secondarily with Purāṇic "Dharma-śikṣā" (instruction on righteous conduct), which often accompanies genealogical and narrative material. It is not a direct instance of Sarga/Pratisarga/Manvantara in this standalone line.
Esoterically, the verse treats power (kṣatra) as a test of inner mastery: the true "victory" is conquest of cruelty within oneself. Wives, sons, wealth, and food symbolize the supports of embodied life; the teaching implies that without dharma these supports become binding and ultimately meaningless. Compassion is thus presented as the inner royal consecration—an ethical tapas that sanctifies worldly authority.