Shloka 3

Nakula’s Adaptive Counsel to Kṛṣṇa in the Kuru Assembly (उद्योगपर्व, अध्याय ७८)

Devanagari script

तत्र वै पौरुषं ब्रूयुरासेकं यत्र कारितम्‌

Transliteration

tatra vai pauruṣaṁ brūyur āsekaṁ yatra kāritam

Translation

ആ കാര്യത്തിൽ ഫലം യഥാർത്ഥത്തിൽ കൈവരിച്ചിടത്തെയാണ് ജനങ്ങൾ സത്യമായ പൗരുഷമെന്ന് പറയുന്നത്; പ്രവർത്തിയായി സിദ്ധിക്കാതെ വെറും ഉദ്ദേശമോ വാക്കോ വീര്യമായി കണക്കാക്കപ്പെടുകയില്ല.

Word by Word

तत्रthere; in that place/context

वैindeed; surely (emphatic particle)

पौरुषम्manly effort; valor; human exertion

ब्रूयुःthey should say; one should call

आसेकम्sprinkling; pouring; irrigation

यत्रwhere

कारितम्caused to be done; made; effected

Speaker

अर्जुन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Arjuna

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?

Valor (pauruṣa) is measured by effective action—by actually bringing about what one undertakes—rather than by mere resolve, speech, or self-assertion. Ethical worth here is tied to responsibility for outcomes and the courage to translate intent into deed.

What is happening in the narrative?

Arjuna is speaking in the Udyoga Parva’s pre-war deliberations, emphasizing a practical standard for heroism: people recognize true effort where a deed has been made to happen. The line supports a broader argument about decisive conduct in a dharma-charged crisis.