Shloka 72

Devanagari script

तदर्धेनापि दातव्या दरिद्रेणापि पार्थिव

Transliteration

tadardhenāpi dātavyā daridreṇāpi pārthiva | pṛthvīnātha! yadi śrotā daridro bhavet tadā tasmai’pi ardhadakṣiṇayā saha godānaṃ niyataṃ kartavyam | pratyekaṃ parvasamāptau vidvān puruṣaḥ suvarṇasahitaṃ pustakaṃ vācakāya samarpayet ||

Translation

വൈശമ്പായനൻ പറഞ്ഞു— ഹേ പാർത്ഥിവാ, ഹേ പൃഥ്വീനാഥാ! ദരിദ്രനായാലും ദാനം നിർബന്ധം ചെയ്യണം—ആചാരദക്ഷിണയുടെ പകുതി മാത്രമായാലും മതി. ശ്രോതാവ് ദരിദ്രനായാലും പകുതി ദക്ഷിണയോടുകൂടി ഗോദാനം തീർച്ചയായും നടത്തണം. ഓരോ പർവവും അവസാനിക്കുമ്പോൾ പണ്ഡിതൻ സ്വർണ്ണസഹിതം ഗ്രന്ഥം വാചകനു സമർപ്പിക്കണം.

Word by Word

• तत्: by that
• तत्: Karana
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: तद्
• Form: Neuter, Instrumental, Singular

• अर्धेन: with half (of it)
• अर्धेन: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: अर्ध
• Form: Neuter, Instrumental, Singular

• अपि: even/also
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अपि

• दातव्या: is to be given / should be given
• Type: Verb
• Root: दा
• Form: तव्यत् (gerundive/obligative), Feminine, Nominative, Singular

• दरिद्रेण: by a poor man
• दरिद्रेण: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: दरिद्र
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Singular

• अपि: even/also
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अपि

• पार्थिव: O king
• Type: Noun
• Root: पार्थिव
• Form: Masculine, Vocative, Singular

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vaiśaṃpāyana
• pārthiva (king)
• pṛthvīnātha (lord of the earth)
• śrotā (listener)
• godāna (cow-gift)
• dakṣiṇā
• suvarṇa
• pustaka
• vācaka (reciter/reader)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse teaches that charitable giving and honoring sacred recitation should not be abandoned due to poverty: one may give proportionately (even half), yet the act of dāna—especially godāna and dakṣiṇā—should be maintained, along with supporting the transmission of scripture by gifting the book and gold to the reciter.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vaiśaṃpāyana instructs a king on proper conduct surrounding listening to and completing recitations of the Mahābhārata: the listener should provide dakṣiṇā and perform godāna according to capacity, and at each parva’s end a learned patron should honor the vācaka by presenting the manuscript/book with gold.