Shloka 38

Devanagari script

एवं कृते महाराज पर श्रेयस्त्वमाप्स्यसि । एवं गावल्गणे क्षत्ता धर्मार्थसहितं वच:

Transliteration

evaṁ kṛte mahārāja paraśreyas tvam āpsyasi | evaṁ gāvalgaṇe kṣattā dharmārthasahitaṁ vacaḥ |

Translation

Dhṛtarāṣṭra berkata: “Wahai Raja, jika hal ini dilakukan, engkau akan mencapai kebaikan yang tertinggi.” Demikianlah, wahai Sañjaya, Vidura—pengurus istana (kṣattā), putera Gāvalgaṇa—telah menyampaikan kepadaku kata-kata yang berlandaskan dharma dan kebijaksanaan politik; namun, walaupun dia menginginkan kesejahteraan anak-anakku, aku tidak menerima nasihatnya.

Word by Word

• एवम्: thus, in this manner
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एवम्

• कृते: when (it is) done; upon doing
• कृते: Adhikarana
• Type: Verb
• Root: कृ
• Form: past passive participle (kta), neuter, locative, singular

• महाराज: O great king
• Type: Noun
• Root: महाराज
• Form: masculine, vocative, singular

• परम्: supreme, highest
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पर
• Form: neuter, accusative, singular

• श्रेयः: welfare, good, benefit
• श्रेयः: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: श्रेयस्
• Form: neuter, accusative, singular

• त्वम्: you
• त्वम्: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: त्वद्
• Form: 2nd, nominative, singular

• आप्स्यसि: you will obtain
• Type: Verb
• Root: आप्
• Form: simple future (luṭ), 2nd, singular, parasmaipada

Speaker

धृतराष्ट उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Dhṛtarāṣṭra
• Sañjaya
• Vidura (Kṣattā)
• Gāvalgaṇa

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

True welfare (śreyas) for a ruler comes from acting on counsel that unites dharma (moral right) with artha (prudent governance). Ignoring such advice—especially due to attachment—leads away from the highest good.

What is happening in the narrative?

Dhṛtarāṣṭra recalls that Vidura advised him on a course of action promising the ‘highest good.’ Speaking to Sañjaya, he admits that Vidura’s counsel was both ethical and politically sound, yet he failed to follow it because of his partiality toward his sons.