Shloka 29

Adhyāya 123 — Droṇa’s Pedagogy: Arjuna’s Preeminence, Ekalavya’s Self-Training, and the Bhāsa-Lakṣya Trial

Devanagari script

ब्राह्मणानां गवां चैव सुह्दां चार्थसाधकम्‌ | दुर्ददां शोकजननं सर्वबान्धवनन्दनम्‌

Transliteration

brāhmaṇānāṁ gavāṁ caiva suhṛdāṁ cārthasādhakam | durdadāṁ śokajananaṁ sarvabāndhavanandanam ||

Translation

ఈ కార్యం బ్రాహ్మణులను, గోవులను, సుహృదులను కూడా బాధిస్తుంది; నిజమైన హితసాధకమైన దానిని సైతం క్షీణింపజేస్తుంది. విడిచిపెట్టడం కష్టం, కాని ఇది శోకాన్ని పుట్టిస్తుంది; (తాత్కాలికంగా) సమస్త బంధువులను సంతోషపరుస్తుంది.

Word by Word

ब्राह्मणानाम्of the Brahmins

गवाम्of the cows

चand

एवindeed/just

सुहृदाम्of friends/well-wishers

चand

अर्थसाधकम्accomplishing (their) purpose/benefit

दुर्ददाम्hard to give (i.e., a gift difficult to part with)

शोकजननम्producing grief

सर्वबान्धवनन्दनम्delighting all kinsmen

Speaker

शक्र उवाच

Characters & Entities

Śakra (Indra)

Brāhmaṇas

Cows (cattle)

Suhṛts (well-wishers/true friends)

Bāndhavas (kinsmen/relatives)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Śakra highlights an ethically dangerous tendency: some actions or attachments may feel family-pleasing and hard to relinquish, yet they harm the vulnerable (Brahmins and cattle), disregard true well-wishers, and ultimately generate grief rather than genuine welfare (artha).

What is happening in the narrative?

Indra (Śakra), speaking in Adi Parva, warns about a course of conduct whose immediate social approval (especially among relatives) masks its harmful consequences—injury to protected groups and the erosion of what truly leads to well-being—thereby framing a moral evaluation within the ongoing story context.