Shloka 78

Ahiṃsā as Threefold Restraint (Mind–Speech–Action) and the Ethics of Consumption

Devanagari script

सूकर: पज्च वर्षाणि दश वर्षाणि श्वाविध: । बिडाल: पज्च वर्षाणि दश वर्षाणि कुक्कुट:,पाँच वर्षमक सूअर रहकर दस वर्ष भेड़िया, पाँच वर्ष बिलाव, दस वर्ष मुर्गा, तीन महीने चींटी और एक महीने कीड़ेकी योनिमें रहता है। इन सभी योनियोंमें चक्कर लगानेके बाद वह पुनः कीड़ेकी योनिमें जन्म लेता है

Transliteration

yudhiṣṭhira uvāca | sūkaraḥ pañca varṣāṇi daśa varṣāṇi śvāvidhaḥ | biḍālaḥ pañca varṣāṇi daśa varṣāṇi kukkuṭaḥ |

Translation

Yudhiṣṭhira berkata: “(Makhluk itu) menjadi babi hutan selama lima tahun, menjadi śvāvidha selama sepuluh tahun, menjadi kucing selama lima tahun, dan menjadi ayam jantan selama sepuluh tahun.”

Word by Word

सूकरःboar (as a birth/state)

पञ्चfive

वर्षाणिyears (duration)

दशten

वर्षाणिyears (duration)

श्वाविधःporcupine (as a birth/state)

बिडालःcat (as a birth/state)

पञ्चfive

वर्षाणिyears (duration)

दशten

वर्षाणिyears (duration)

कुक्कुटःcock/rooster (as a birth/state)

Speaker

युधिछिर उवाच

Characters & Entities

य

युधिष्ठिर (Yudhiṣṭhira)

स

सूकर (boar)

श

श्वाविध (śvāvidha)

ब

बिडाल (cat)

क

कुक्कुट (rooster)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse supports the Anuśāsana Parva’s ethical instruction by illustrating saṃsāra: actions can propel a being through successive non-human births for fixed spans, underscoring the gravity of adharma and the need for righteous conduct to avoid degrading rebirths.

What is happening in the narrative?

Yudhiṣṭhira is speaking within a didactic exchange on dharma and karmic results, listing a sequence of animal embodiments and their durations as part of a broader description of how a soul may wander through various wombs due to past deeds.