Mahabharata 3.201.32 — Vana Parva, Adhyaya 201, Shloka 32

Dharma-vyādha’s Analysis of Moral Decline and the Mahābhūta–Guṇa Schema (धर्मव्याधोपदेशः)

Devanagari script

वसुन्धरां तु यो दद्याद्‌ द्विजाय विदुरात्मने

Transliteration

vasundharāṃ tu yo dadyād dvijāya vidurātmane

Translation

जो कोणी विवेकी व संयमी स्वभावाच्या योग्य द्विज (ब्राह्मण)ाला वसुंधरा—भूमी व तिचे वैभव—दान करील…

Word by Word

• वसुन्धराम्: the earth/land
• वसुन्धराम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: वसुन्धरा
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Singular

• तु: but/indeed
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु

• यः: who (he who)
• यः: Karta
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: यद्
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• दद्यात्: should give
• Type: Verb
• Root: दा
• Form: Vidhi-linga (Optative), Non-past (modal), Third, Singular, Parasmaipada

• द्विजाय: to a Brahmin (twice-born)
• द्विजाय: Sampradana
• Type: Noun
• Root: द्विज
• Form: Masculine, Dative, Singular

• विदुरात्मने: to one whose self is wise/prudent
• विदुरात्मने: Sampradana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: विदुरात्मन्
• Form: Masculine, Dative, Singular

Speaker

मार्कण्डेय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Mārkaṇḍeya
• dvija (brāhmaṇa)
• vasundharā (earth/land)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse begins a teaching on dāna-dharma: the highest gifts (even land) gain ethical value when offered to a truly worthy recipient—here, a brāhmaṇa of discerning, self-controlled character—highlighting that intention and recipient-qualification are central to merit.

What is happening in the narrative?

Mārkaṇḍeya continues an instructive discourse in the Vana Parva, introducing an exemplary act of giving—donating land to a qualified brāhmaṇa—as part of a broader discussion on righteous conduct and the fruits of generosity.