Shloka 123

Devanagari script

कच्चिदस्त्राणि सर्वाणि ब्रह्मुदण्डश्व॒ तेडनघ । विषयोगास्तथा सर्वे विदिता: शत्रुनाशना:,निष्पाप नरेश! तुम्हें सब प्रकारके अस्त्र (जो मन्त्रबलसे प्रयुक्त होते हैं), वेदोक्त दण्ड-विधान तथा शत्रुओंका नाश करनेवाले सब प्रकारके विषप्रयोग ज्ञात हैं न?

Transliteration

kaccid astrāṇi sarvāṇi brahmadaṇḍaś ca te 'nagha | viṣayogās tathā sarve viditāḥ śatrunāśanāḥ ||

Translation

ນາຣະດະ ກ່າວວ່າ: «ໂອ ຜູ້ບໍ່ມີມົນທິນ! ທ່ານໄດ້ຮຽນຮູ້ອາວຸດທັງປວງ—ອາວຸດທີ່ໃຊ້ດ້ວຍພະລັງມົນຕຣາ—ພ້ອມທັງວິໄນແຫ່ງການລົງໂທດແລະການຄວບຄຸມທີ່ວິດາຮັບຮອງບໍ? ແລະທ່ານຮູ້ວິທີໃຊ້ພິດທຸກປະເພດທີ່ທຳລາຍສັດຕູໄດ້ທັງໝົດບໍ?»

Word by Word

कच्चित्whether (indeed)?

अस्त्राणिweapons (missiles)

सर्वाणिall

ब्रह्मोदण्डाःBrahma-staffs / Brahma's punitive rods (a class of weapons/ordinances)

चand

तेto you

अनघO sinless one

विषयोगाःapplications/uses of poison

तथाlikewise, also

सर्वेall

विदिताःknown

शत्रुनाशनाःdestroyers of enemies

Speaker

नारद उवाच

Characters & Entities

Nārada

astrāṇi (mantra-weapons)

brahmadaṇḍa (Vedic punitive discipline)

viṣayoga (poison techniques)

śatru (enemies)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse frames royal competence as comprehensive knowledge of force and restraint: mastery of mantra-weapons and Veda-sanctioned punishment (brahmadaṇḍa) is expected, yet it also raises an ethical tension by including poison-techniques—implying that a ruler must understand even morally dangerous means, while dharma determines whether and how such means may be used.

What is happening in the narrative?

Nārada addresses a king (vocatively ‘anagha’) and tests his preparedness for rule and conflict by asking whether he has learned all categories of weapons, the orthodox principles of punitive governance, and even enemy-destroying poison applications—probing the breadth of his training in kṣātra and rājadharma.