Shloka 5

Dāna-Śreṣṭhatā: On the Superiority of Giving

Maitreya–Vyāsa Exemplum

Devanagari script

निरता येन भावेन तत्र मे शृूणु कारणम्‌ | सम्यक्‌ चायमनुप्रश्नस्त्वयोक्तस्तु युधिष्ठिर,भीष्मजीने कहा--पृथ्वीनाथ! इस संसारमें आये हुए प्राणी उन्नतिमें या अवनतिमें तथा शुभ या अशुभ अवस्थामें ही सुख मानते हैं। मरना नहीं चाहते। इसका क्या कारण है, यह बताता हूँ, सुनो। युधिष्ठिर! यह तुमने बहुत अच्छा प्रश्न उपस्थित किया है

Transliteration

niratā yena bhāvena tatra me śṛṇu kāraṇam | samyak cāyam anupraśnas tvayoktas tu yudhiṣṭhira ||

Translation

ജീവികൾ ഏത് ഭാവത്താൽ ജീവിതത്തിൽ ആസക്തരാകുന്നുവോ, അതിന്റെ കാരണം എന്നിൽ നിന്ന് കേൾക്കുക. ഹേ യുധിഷ്ഠിര! നീ ഉന്നയിച്ച ഈ അനുചോദ്യമത്രയും യുക്തവും ഉചിതവും ആകുന്നു.

Word by Word

• [{'term': 'niratāḥ', 'definition': 'engaged in

• absorbed in'}, {'term': 'yena bhāvena', 'definition': 'by which disposition/attitude

• through what state of mind'}, {'term': 'tatra', 'definition': 'therein

• in that matter/context'}, {'term': 'me', 'definition': 'from me

• my'}, {'term': 'śṛṇu', 'definition': 'hear

• listen'}, {'term': 'kāraṇam', 'definition': 'cause

• reason'}, {'term': 'samyak', 'definition': 'properly

• well'}, {'term': 'ayam', 'definition': 'this'}, {'term': 'anupraśnaḥ', 'definition': 'follow-up question

• further inquiry (asked to clarify a point)'}, {'term': 'tvayā uktaḥ', 'definition': 'spoken/asked by you'}, {'term': 'tu', 'definition': 'indeed

• emphatic particle'}, {'term': 'yudhiṣṭhira', 'definition': 'Yudhishthira (eldest Pandava

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Bhishma
• Yudhishthira

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Bhishma affirms that Yudhishthira’s inquiry is properly framed and prepares to explain the psychological and ethical cause behind beings’ attachment to life—setting up a dharma-based analysis of why people cling to existence.

What is happening in the narrative?

In the Anushasana Parva’s instructional dialogue, Yudhishthira asks a clarifying follow-up question; Bhishma, as teacher, praises the question and introduces that he will now state the reason behind the attitude under discussion.