Shloka 114

Adhyaya 34 — Madālāsā’s Instruction on Sadācāra (Householder Conduct, Purity, and Daily Rites)

Sanskrit

तत्र नित्यं वसेत् प्राज्ञः कुतः कुनृपतौ सुखम् ।

यत्राप्रधृष्यो नृपतिर्यत्र शस्यवती मही ॥

Transliteration

tatra nityaṃ vaset prājñaḥ kutaḥ kunṛpatau sukham / yatrāpradhṛṣyo nṛpatiryatra śasyavatī mahī

Translation

അത്തരം ദേശത്തിൽ ജ്ഞാനി എപ്പോഴും വസിക്കണം; ദുഷ്ടരാജാവിന്റെ കീഴിൽ സുഖം എവിടെ? എവിടെ ഭരണാധികാരി എളുപ്പത്തിൽ ആക്രമിക്കപ്പെടാത്തവനും ഭൂമി വിളസമൃദ്ധവുമാണോ—അവിടെയാണു വാസം ശ്രേയസ്കരം।

Word by Word

• tatra: there
• tatra: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatra (अव्यय)
• Form: Adverb (देशवाचक अव्यय)

• nityam: always
• nityam: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: nityam (अव्यय; nitya-शब्दात्)
• Form: Adverb (कालवाचक अव्यय)

• vaset: should dwell
• vaset: Kriyā (क्रिया/Predicate)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √vas (वस्) (धातु)
• Form: Vidhi-liṅ (विधिलिङ्/Optative), 3rd person (प्रथमपुरुष), Singular (एकवचन); Parasmaipada (परस्मैपद)

• prājñaḥ: a wise man
• prājñaḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: prājña (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Nominative (प्रथमा/1), Singular (एकवचन)

• kutaḥ: how (can there be)? / whence
• kutaḥ: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Discourse particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: kutaḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: Interrogative/negative adverb (प्रश्न/निषेधार्थ अव्यय; 'whence/how')

• ku-nṛpatau: in/under a bad king
• ku-nṛpatau: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ku + nṛpa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Locative (सप्तमी/7), Singular (एकवचन); उपपद-तत्पुरुषः (ku- = bad) → 'in a bad king'

• sukham: happiness
• sukham: Karta (कर्ता; existential sense)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sukha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Nominative (प्रथमा/1), Singular (एकवचन)

• yatra: where
• yatra: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yatra (अव्यय)
• Form: Relative adverb (देशवाचक सम्बन्धबोधक अव्यय)

• a-pradhṛṣyaḥ: unassailable
• a-pradhṛṣyaḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: a + pradhṛṣya (कृदन्त; √dhṛṣ धृष् (धातु) + यत्/ण्यत्; 'to be assailable')
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Nominative (प्रथमा/1), Singular (एकवचन); नञ्-समास/निषेध (a- = not)

• nṛpatiḥ: the king
• nṛpatiḥ: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: nṛpati (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Nominative (प्रथमा/1), Singular (एकवचन)

• yatra: where
• yatra: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: yatra (अव्यय)
• Form: Relative adverb (देशवाचक सम्बन्धबोधक अव्यय)

• śasyavatī: rich in crops
• śasyavatī: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: śasyavat (प्रातिपदिक; -वत् प्रत्यय)
• Form: Feminine (स्त्रीलिङ्ग), Nominative (प्रथमा/1), Singular (एकवचन)

• mahī: the earth/land
• mahī: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine (स्त्रीलिङ्ग), Nominative (प्रथमा/1), Singular (एकवचन)

Speakers

• Didactic narrator within dharma-teaching context

Verse Rasa

{ "primaryRasa": "shanta", "secondaryRasa": "dharma", "rasaIntensity": 0, "emotionalArcPosition": "", "moodDescriptors": [] }

Key Themes

• Dharma
• Rājadharma
• Prosperity
• Security
• Agriculture

FAQs

What is the philosophical or ethical takeaway?

Private virtue depends partly on public order: unjust or weak governance erodes happiness; security and agricultural prosperity are signs of a well-ordered realm.

How does this fit the Pancalakshana (5 characteristics)?

Rājadharma-adjacent counsel (ācāra); not within the five cosmological markers.

What is the esoteric significance?

The ‘invulnerable king’ symbolizes a stable inner governor (buddhi) that cannot be shaken by impulses; ‘fertile earth’ mirrors a mind that yields wholesome outcomes when protected by dharma.