Shloka 8

Devanagari script

यस्मै देवा: प्रयच्छन्ति पुरुषाय पराभवम्‌ | बुद्धि तस्यापकर्षन्ति सोडवाचीनानि पश्यति

Transliteration

yasmai devāḥ prayacchanti puruṣāya parābhavam | buddhiṃ tasyāpakarṣanti so ’dva-cīnān(i) paśyati ||

Translation

సంజయుడు పలికెను—దేవతలు ఎవరికైనా పరాభవం కలిగించాలని నిర్ణయించినప్పుడు, ముందుగా అతని వివేచనబుద్ధిని హరిస్తారు; అప్పుడు అతడు అన్నిటినీ విపరీతంగా చూస్తాడు.

Word by Word

• यस्मै: to whom
• यस्मै: Sampradana
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: यद्
• Form: Masculine, Dative, Singular

• देवाः: the gods
• देवाः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: देव
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• प्रयच्छन्ति: grant, bestow
• Type: Verb
• Root: प्र-यम् (यच्छति)
• Form: Present, Indicative, Third, Plural, Parasmaipada

• पुरुषाय: to a man
• पुरुषाय: Sampradana
• Type: Noun
• Root: पुरुष
• Form: Masculine, Dative, Singular

• पराभवम्: defeat, downfall
• पराभवम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: पराभव
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• बुद्धिम्: intellect, understanding
• बुद्धिम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: बुद्धि
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Singular

• तस्य: of him
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: तद्
• Form: Masculine, Genitive, Singular

• अपकर्षन्ति: draw away, take away
• Type: Verb
• Root: अप-कृष्
• Form: Present, Indicative, Third, Plural, Parasmaipada

• सः: he
• सः: Karta
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: तद्
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• उद्वाचीनानि: perverse, contrary things
• उद्वाचीनानि: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: उद्वाचीन
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Plural

• पश्यति: sees
• Type: Verb
• Root: दृश्
• Form: Present, Indicative, Third, Singular, Parasmaipada

Speaker

संजय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Sañjaya
• devāḥ (the gods)
• puruṣa (a man/person)
• buddhi (discernment/intellect)
• parābhava (downfall/defeat)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Downfall begins internally: when discernment (buddhi) is lost, a person misjudges right and wrong, rationalizes adharma as dharma, and becomes unable to correct course—making ruin almost inevitable.

What is happening in the narrative?

Sañjaya offers a reflective maxim within the Sabha Parva context, explaining how divine intention toward a person’s defeat manifests as the erosion of judgment, leading that person to perceive matters in an inverted, self-destructive way.