Shloka 12

आपद्धर्मे कोशबलन्यायः | Treasury, Force, and Crisis-Ethics for the King

Devanagari script

ततः स कथयामास कथां धर्मार्थसंहिताम्‌ । ऋषिमध्ये महाराज तनुर्धर्मभूतां वर:,महाराज! तदनन्तर धर्मात्माओंमें श्रेष्ठ तनु ऋषियोंके बीचमें बैठकर धर्म और अर्थसे युक्त कथा कहने लगे

Transliteration

tataḥ sa kathayāmāsa kathāṁ dharmārthasaṁhitām | ṛṣimadhye mahārāja tanur dharmabhūtāṁ varaḥ ||

Translation

Então, ó grande rei, o excelente Tanū—o mais eminente entre os justos—sentou-se no meio dos ṛṣi e começou a proferir um discurso entretecido de dharma e artha, destinado a orientar a conduta e assegurar o bem-estar.

Word by Word

• ततः: then, thereafter
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ततः
• Form: indeclinable (ablatival adverb)

• सः: he
• सः: Karta
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: तद्
• Form: masculine, nominative, singular

• कथयामास: told, narrated
• Type: Verb
• Root: कथय् (कथ् + णिच्)
• Form: perfect (लिट्), 3rd person, singular, parasmaipada

• कथाम्: story, discourse
• कथाम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: कथा
• Form: feminine, accusative, singular

• धर्मार्थसंहिताम्: connected with dharma and artha
• Type: Adjective
• Root: धर्मार्थसंहिता
• Form: feminine, accusative, singular

• ऋषि-मध्ये: in the midst of sages
• ऋषि-मध्ये: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: ऋषि-मध्य
• Form: masculine, locative, singular

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

• तनुः: Tanu (proper name)
• तनुः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: तनु
• Form: masculine, nominative, singular

• धर्म-भूताम्: being/embodying dharma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: धर्मभूत
• Form: feminine, accusative, singular

• वरः: excellent, best
• Type: Adjective
• Root: वर
• Form: masculine, nominative, singular

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Bhishma
• Mahārāja (the king addressed, i.e., Yudhiṣṭhira)
• Tanū
• Ṛṣis (sages)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse frames the instruction as dharmārthasaṁhitā—teaching that true guidance integrates moral duty (dharma) with practical welfare and statecraft (artha), so that ethical conduct and effective living support each other.

What is happening in the narrative?

Bhīṣma tells the king that Tanū, regarded as foremost in righteousness, sits among the assembled sages and begins narrating a discourse that is both ethically grounded and practically oriented.