Shloka 18

Dhaumya’s Counsel on Incognito Conduct in a Royal Household (राजवसतौ आचरण-निति)

Devanagari script

नैषां दारेषु कुर्वीत मैत्रीं प्राज्ञ. कदाचन । अन्तःपुरचरा ये च द्वेष्टि यानहिताश्न ये

Transliteration

naiṣāṁ dāreṣu kurvīta maitrīṁ prājñaḥ kadācana | antaḥpuracarā ye ca dveṣṭi yān ahitāśnaye ||

Translation

ബുദ്ധിമാൻ ഒരിക്കലും പരസ്ത്രീകളോടു അടുപ്പമുള്ള സൗഹൃദം സ്ഥാപിക്കരുത്. അന്തഃപുരത്തിൽ സഞ്ചരിക്കുന്നവരെയും, വൈരാഗ്യത്താൽ മറ്റൊരാളുടെ അനർത്ഥം തേടുന്നവരെയും ജാഗ്രതയോടെ കാണണം.

Word by Word

nanot

eṣāmof these (people)

dāreṣuin (their) wives

kurvītashould make/do

maitrīmfriendship

prājñaO wise one

kadācanaever/at any time

antaḥpura-carāḥthose who move about in the inner apartments (harem-dwellers)

yewho

caand

dveṣṭihates

yānwhom

ahita-aśnānthose who eat what is harmful / ill-wishers (lit. harmful-eaters)

yewho

Speaker

धौग्य उवाच

Characters & Entities

ध

धौग्य (Dhaumya)

अ

अन्तःपुर (inner palace/royal apartments)

द

दारा (wives)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Maintain strict ethical boundaries: a prudent person avoids intimate association with others’ wives and remains wary of those who operate in secluded palace spaces or harbor malice, since such situations easily breed suspicion, intrigue, and harm.

What is happening in the narrative?

Dhaumya is giving counsel on proper conduct and practical caution—warning against compromising relationships and against trusting those connected with inner-palace intrigues or those motivated by enmity.