Shloka 55

उत्पातवर्णनम् (Utpāta-varṇanam) — Catalogue of Portents

Devanagari script

हन्यात्‌ स एन॑ यो हन्यात्‌ कुलधर्म स्विकां तनुम्‌ | कालेनोत्पथगन्तासि शक्‍्ये सति यथा55पदि

Transliteration

hanyāt sa enaṃ yo hanyāt kuladharma-svikāṃ tanum | kālenotpatha-gantāsi śakye sati yathā || 55 ||

Translation

ໄວສັມປາຍະນະ ກ່າວວ່າ: «ຜູ້ໃດທຳລາຍທຳມະຂອງວົງຕະກູນ ກໍເຫມືອນທຳລາຍຮ່າງກາຍຂອງຕົນເອງ; ແລະທຳມະນັ້ນເອງຈະຕອບແທນໂດຍທຳລາຍເຂົາຄືນ. ໃນຂະນະທີ່ເຈົ້າຍັງສາມາດຮັກສາຄວາມຊອບທຳໄດ້—ກ່ອນທີ່ໄພພິບັດອັນຫຼີກບໍ່ພົ້ນຈະມາເຖິງ—ເຈົ້າກຳລັງຖືກກາລຜັກດັນໃຫ້ຫັນຫນີຈາກທຳມະ ແລະເດີນຕາມທາງຜິດ, ເຫມືອນຄົນທັງຫຼາຍທີ່ມັກເຮັດເຊັ່ນນັ້ນກໍແຕ່ເມື່ອຕົກຢູ່ໃນຄວາມທຸກຍາກ»។

Word by Word

• हन्यात्: should kill / would destroy
• Type: Verb
• Root: हन् (धातु)
• Form: Vidhi-linga, Present (injunctive sense), 3, Singular, Parasmaipada

• सः: he
• सः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• एनम्: this (person/one)
• एनम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: एतद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• यः: who
• यः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• हन्यात्: should kill / would destroy
• Type: Verb
• Root: हन् (धातु)
• Form: Vidhi-linga, Present (injunctive sense), 3, Singular, Parasmaipada

• कुलधर्मम्: family-duty / ancestral law
• कुलधर्मम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: कुलधर्म (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• स्विकाम्: own / pertaining to oneself
• Type: Adjective
• Root: स्विका (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Singular

• तनुम्: body
• तनुम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: तनु (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Singular

• कालेन: by time / by fate
• कालेन: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: काल (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Singular

• उत्पथगन्ता: one who goes on a wrong path
• उत्पथगन्ता: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: उत्पथ-गन्तृ (प्रातिपदिक; गम् धातु-नृ)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• असि: you are
• Type: Verb
• Root: अस् (धातु)
• Form: Lat, Present, 2, Singular, Parasmaipada

• शक्ये: when possible / in the possible (case)
• शक्ये: Adhikarana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: शक्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Locative, Singular

• सति: being / while it exists
• सति: Adhikarana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सत् (प्रातिपदिक; अस् धातु-क्त)
• Form: Neuter, Locative, Singular

• यथा: as / just as
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यथा (अव्यय)

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vaiśaṃpāyana
• kāla (Time)
• kuladharma

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Clan-dharma is treated as inseparable from one’s own life: to violate it is self-destructive. One should uphold dharma while it remains practicable, rather than abandoning it under the pressure of ‘Time’ or impending crisis.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vaiśaṃpāyana, narrating the events of Bhīṣma-parvan, conveys a moral admonition: the listener (implicitly a decision-maker in the unfolding conflict) is warned that turning to an unrighteous path before necessity compels it is a grave ethical error with self-harming consequences.