Shloka 27

Yuddha-yajña-vyākhyāna (The Battle as Sacrifice): Ambarīṣa–Indra Saṃvāda

Devanagari script

ब्रह्मस्वे ह्वियमाणे तु त्यक्त्वा युद्धे प्रियां तनुम्‌ू

Transliteration

brahmasve hviyamāṇe tu tyaktvā yuddhe priyāṃ tanum

Translation

അംബരീഷൻ പറഞ്ഞു— ബ്രഹ്മസ്വം (ബ്രാഹ്മധർമ്മത്തിന്റെ ധനവും കടമയും) വിളിക്കുമ്പോൾ, യുദ്ധത്തിൽ പ്രിയമായ ശരീരത്തെയും ഉപേക്ഷിക്കണം.

Word by Word

• ब्रह्मस्वे: in the Brahma-wealth (spiritual treasure/knowledge as one's own)
• ब्रह्मस्वे: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: ब्रह्मस्व (ब्रह्म + स्व)
• Form: Neuter, Locative, Singular

• ह्वियमाणे: when being called/invoked
• ह्वियमाणे: Adhikarana
• Type: Verb
• Root: ह्वि (√ह्वा/ह्वि, to call/invoke)
• Form: Neuter, Locative, Singular

• तु: but/indeed
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु

• त्यक्त्वा: having abandoned
• Type: Verb
• Root: त्यज् (√त्यज्, to abandon)
• Form: Absolutive (Gerund)

• युद्धे: in battle
• युद्धे: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: युद्ध
• Form: Neuter, Locative, Singular

• प्रियाम्: dear/beloved
• प्रियाम्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: प्रिया
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Singular

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

Speaker

अम्बरीष उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Ambarīṣa
• brahma-sva (sacred Brahmanical wealth/duty)
• battle (yuddha)
• body (tanu)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse teaches prioritizing higher dharma—here expressed as the call to Brahmanical sacred duty/treasure—over attachment to the body, even to the point of accepting death in battle when righteousness requires it.

What is happening in the narrative?

Ambarīṣa is speaking in a didactic context in Śānti Parva, presenting an ethical maxim: when summoned by a superior spiritual obligation, one should be ready to relinquish bodily life, even amid warfare.