Shloka 3

Adhyaya 57 — The Ninefold Divisions of Bharata: Mountains, Rivers, and Peoples

Sanskrit

न खल्वन्यत्र मर्त्यानां भूमौ कर्म विधीयते ।

तस्माद्विस्तरशो ब्रह्मन् ! ममैदद्भारतं वद ॥

Transliteration

na khalv anyatra martyānāṃ bhūmau karma vidhīyate / tasmād vistaraśo brahman! mamaitad bhārataṃ vada

Translation

നിശ്ചയമായും ഭൂമിയിൽ മറ്റെവിടെയും മർത്ത്യർക്കായി കർമ്മം (മാർഗ്ഗരൂപത്തിൽ) വിധിക്കപ്പെട്ടിട്ടില്ല. അതിനാൽ, ഹേ ബ്രഹ്മൻ, ഈ ഭാരതത്തെ എനിക്ക് വിശദമായി പറയുക.

Word by Word

• na: not
• na: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/negation)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya; negation

• khalu: indeed
• khalu: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: khalu (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya; emphatic particle (खलु)

• anyatra: elsewhere
• anyatra: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण/locative sense)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: anyatra (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya; adverb of place

• martyānām: of mortals
• martyānām: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/genitive)
• Type: Noun
• Root: martya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Genitive (6th/षष्ठी), Plural

• bhūmau: on earth
• bhūmau: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhūmi (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine, Locative (7th/सप्तमी), Singular

• karma: action/ritual duty
• karma: Karta (कर्ता/grammatical subject in passive)
• Type: Noun
• Root: karman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular; subject in passive

• vidhīyate: is enjoined / is prescribed
• vidhīyate: Kriyā (क्रिया/predicate)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vi-√dhā (धातु)
• Form: Laṭ (लट्, Present), Ātmanepada, 3rd Person, Singular; passive sense (कर्मणि)

• tasmāt: therefore
• tasmāt: Hetu/Apādāna (हेतु/अपादान: therefore/from that)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter/Masculine, Ablative (5th/पञ्चमी), Singular; pronominal

• vistaraśaḥ: in detail
• vistaraśaḥ: Kriyā-viśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: vistaraśas (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya; adverb (विस्तरशः)

• brahman: O Brahmin (sage)
• brahman: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: brahman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Vocative (8th/सम्बोधन), Singular

• mama: to me / for me
• mama: Sampradāna (सम्प्रदान/beneficiary)
• Type: Noun
• Root: asmad (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Genitive (6th/षष्ठी), Singular; 1st-person pronoun

• etat: this
• etat: Karma (कर्म/object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: etad (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular; demonstrative

• bhāratam: Bhārata (land)
• bhāratam: Karma (कर्म/object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhārata (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular

• vada: tell/speak
• vada: Kriyā (क्रिया/predicate)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √vad (धातु)
• Form: Loṭ (लोट्, Imperative), Parasmaipada, 2nd Person (मध्यम-पुरुष), Singular

Speakers

• Krausṭuki to Mārkaṇḍeya

Verse Rasa

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

Key Themes

• Dharma and prescription
• Bhāratavarṣa
• Soteriology (path to mokṣa)
• Dialogue inquiry

FAQs

What is the philosophical or ethical takeaway?

The verse asserts the special status of human life in Bhārata as a realm of injunction (vidhi)—where dharma is taught, chosen, and practiced—making it the strategic locus for spiritual progress.

How does this fit the Pancalakṣaṇa (5 characteristics)?

A bridge from cosmography to dharma-oriented exposition; still framed as world-description ('Sarga') with an explicit emphasis on karmic injunction.

What is the esoteric significance?

‘Vidhi’ implies structured pathways: the cosmos is not merely spatial but pedagogical—Bhārata functions as a ‘school’ where freedom and law together enable transformation.