Shloka 9

Vetasa-Nīti: The Reed and the Flood (वेतस-नीति)

Devanagari script

वेतसो वेगमायातं दृष्टवा नमति नापरे | सरिद्वेगेडव्यतिक्रान्ते स्थानमासाद्य तिष्ठति,बेंत नदीके वेगको आते देख झुक जाता है, पर दूसरे वृक्ष ऐसा नहीं करते; अतः वह सरिताओंका वेग शान्त होनेपर पुनः अपने स्थानमें ही स्थित हो जाता है

Transliteration

vetaso vegam āyātaṃ dṛṣṭvā namati nāpare | sarid-vege ’py atikrānte sthānam āsādya tiṣṭhati ||

Translation

Sāgara berkata: “Apabila melihat arus sungai menerjang, vetaśa menunduk; sedangkan pokok-pokok lain tidak. Maka apabila derasnya aliran telah berlalu, ia kembali ke tempatnya dan berdiri teguh semula.”

Word by Word

वेतसःthe cane/reed (tree)

वेगम्rush, force

आयातम्come/arrived

दृष्ट्वाhaving seen

नमतिbends

नnot

अपरेothers (other trees)

सरित्-वेगेin the river’s current

व्यतिक्रान्तेwhen (it is) passed/over

स्थानम्place, position

आसाद्यhaving reached/attained

तिष्ठतिstands, remains

Speaker

सागर उवाच

Characters & Entities

Sāgara

vetasa (reed)

sarid (river/current)

other trees (apare)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Flexibility in adversity is a form of strength: by yielding when an overwhelming force arrives, one avoids ruin and can return to one’s rightful position once the danger passes.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sāgara illustrates a moral point with a natural image: the reed bends before the river’s surge while rigid trees resist; after the current subsides, the reed rises and stands again in its place.