Shloka 73

Devanagari script

अनुज्ञाप्य मृगेन्द्रं तु गोमायुर्नीतिशास्त्रवित्‌ । तेनामर्षेण संतप्त: प्रायमासितुमैच्छत,तत्पश्चात्‌ नीतिशास्त्रके ज्ञाता सियारने मृगरगाजकी आज्ञा लेकर अमर्षसे संतप्त हो उपवास करके प्राण त्याग देनेका विचार किया

Transliteration

anujñāpya mṛgendraṃ tu gomāyur nītiśāstravit | tenāmarṣeṇa saṃtaptaḥ prāyam āsitum aicchat ||

Translation

അതിനുശേഷം നीतിശാസ്ത്രവിദഗ്ധനായ കുറുക്കൻ മൃഗേന്ദ്രന്റെ അനുവാദം വാങ്ങി, അമർഷം കൊണ്ട് ദഹിച്ച്, പ്രായോപവേശം (ഉപവാസം ചെയ്ത് പ്രാണത്യാഗം) ചെയ്യാൻ ആഗ്രഹിച്ചു।

Word by Word

अनुज्ञाप्यhaving taken leave (after requesting/obtaining permission)

मृगेन्द्रम्the lord of beasts (lion)

तुbut/indeed

गोमायुःthe jackal

नीतिशास्त्रवित्knower of political science/ethics

तेनby that / because of that

अमर्षेणwith indignation/resentment

संतप्तःtormented/afflicted

प्रायम्fast unto death (prāya)

आसितुम्to undertake (to sit in a fast)

ऐच्छत्desired/wished

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

Bhīṣma

mṛgendra (lion)

gomāyu (jackal)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Learning in nīti (ethical and political wisdom) is incomplete without inner discipline; resentment (amarṣa) can overpower reason and push one toward harmful extremes like self-destruction. The verse implicitly upholds self-mastery as a key component of dharma.

What is happening in the narrative?

A jackal, described as knowledgeable in nīti-śāstra, takes leave of the lion (mṛgendra). Burning with indignation, he considers undertaking prāya—fasting unto death—as a response to his wounded pride/resentment.