Shloka 8

Vāraṇāvata-prasaṃsā and the Pāṇḍavas’ Departure (वरणावत-प्रशंसा तथा पाण्डव-प्रयाणम्)

Devanagari script

मैवं जीर्णमुपास्स्व त्वं सख्यं भवत्वपाकृधि । आसीत्‌ सख्य॑ द्विजश्रेष्ठ त्वया मे5र्थनिबन्धनम्‌,इस प्रकार क्षीण होनेवाली मैत्रीका भरोसा न करो। हम दोनों एक-दूसरेके मित्र थे-- इस भावको हृदयसे निकाल दो। द्विजश्रेष्ठ! तुम्हारे साथ पहले जो मेरी मित्रता थी, वह साथ-साथ खेलने और अध्ययन करने आदि स्वार्थको लेकर हुई थी

Transliteration

maivaṁ jīrṇam upāssva tvaṁ sakhyaṁ bhavatv apākṛdhi | āsīt sakhyaṁ dvijaśreṣṭha tvayā me 'rthanibandhanam ||

Translation

Maka janganlah engkau berpaut pada persahabatan yang telah tua dan lusuh itu. Singkirkan dari hatimu sangkaan, “kita ini sahabat.” Wahai Brahmana yang utama, persahabatan yang pernah ada antara aku dan engkau dahulu terikat oleh kepentingan diri—demi bermain bersama, belajar bersama, dan manfaat seumpamanya.

Word by Word

• {'mā': 'do not', 'evaṁ': 'thus

• in this manner', 'jīrṇa': 'worn out, decayed, old', 'upāssva (upās)': 'to resort to, cling to, rely upon', 'tvam': 'you', 'sakhyam': 'friendship', 'bhavatv': 'let it be

• may it become', 'apākṛdhi (apa-√kṛ)': 'remove, cast away', 'āsīt': 'was (imperfect of √as)', 'dvijaśreṣṭha': 'best of the twice-born (honorific for a Brahmin)', 'tvayā': 'by/with you', 'me': 'my

• for me', 'artha': 'purpose, advantage, self-interest', 'nibandhana': 'bond, tie, basis, cause'}

Speaker

हुपद उवाच

Characters & Entities

• हुपद (Hupada)
• dvijaśreṣṭha (a Brahmin addressee)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse critiques friendship grounded in utility: when a relationship is sustained only by personal benefit, it becomes ‘worn out’ and should not be clung to; one should honestly discard the sentimental claim of friendship when its basis was merely advantage.

What is happening in the narrative?

Hupada addresses a Brahmin counterpart and repudiates their former bond, insisting that the earlier ‘friendship’ arose from shared activities like play and study and was therefore interest-driven rather than rooted in enduring goodwill.