Shloka 40

अध्याय २९७ — श्रेयः, धृति, दान-नियमाः

Welfare, Steadfastness, and Norms of Giving

Devanagari script

धर्मशास्त्राणि वेदाक्ष षडड़ानि नराधिप । श्रेयसो<र्थे विधीयन्ते नरस्याक्लिष्टकर्मण:,नरेश्वर! धर्मशास्त्र और छहों अंगोंसहित वेद पुण्यकर्म करनेवाले पुरुषके कल्याणके लिये ही कर्तव्यका विधान करते हैं

Transliteration

dharmaśāstrāṇi vedākṣa ṣaḍaṅgāni narādhipa | śreyaso 'rthe vidhīyante narasyākliṣṭakarmaṇaḥ || naraśvara ||

Translation

Парашара сказал: «О царь, Дхармашастры и Веда — вместе с шестью вспомогательными дисциплинами (ведангами) — устанавливают правила должного ради высшего блага человека, особенно для того, кто совершает праведные дела без внутренней смуты и без вредоносного напряжения. Их цель — не одна лишь ритуальная форма, но благо и возвышение человеческой жизни».

Word by Word

• धर्मशास्त्राणि: treatises on dharma
• धर्मशास्त्राणि: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: धर्मशास्त्र
• Form: Neuter, Nominative, Plural

• वेदाः: the Vedas
• वेदाः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: वेद
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• अक्ष: O Ax(a) (as addressed)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अक्ष
• Form: Masculine, Vocative, Singular

• षडङ्गानि: the six auxiliaries (Vedāṅgas)
• षडङ्गानि: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: षडङ्ग
• Form: Neuter, Nominative, Plural

• नराधिप: O lord of men (king)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नराधिप
• Form: Masculine, Vocative, Singular

• श्रेयसः: of welfare / of the good
• Type: Noun
• Root: श्रेयस्
• Form: Neuter, Genitive, Singular

• अर्थे: for the purpose / in the matter
• अर्थे: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: अर्थ
• Form: Masculine, Locative, Singular

• विधीयन्ते: are prescribed / are laid down
• Type: Verb
• Root: धा (वि + धा)
• Form: Present, Third, Plural, Passive (Ātmanepada form)

• नरस्य: of a man
• Type: Noun
• Root: नर
• Form: Masculine, Genitive, Singular

• अक्लिष्टकर्मणः: of one whose actions are not afflicted (i.e., of a virtuous doer)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अक्लिष्टकर्मन्
• Form: Masculine, Genitive, Singular

• नरेश्वर: O king / lord of men
• Type: Noun
• Root: नरेश्वर
• Form: Masculine, Vocative, Singular

Speaker

पराशर उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Parāśara
• narādhipa (the king addressed)
• Dharmaśāstra
• Veda
• Ṣaḍvedāṅga (six Vedāṅgas)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

That Dharmaśāstra and the Veda (with its six Vedāṅgas) exist to prescribe conduct aimed at śreyas—the enduring welfare and moral uplift of a person—rather than being ends in themselves.

What is happening in the narrative?

Parāśara is instructing a king in the Śānti Parva, emphasizing the purpose of scriptural injunctions: to guide human action toward the highest good, especially for those committed to righteous, untroubled conduct.