Shanti Parva Adhyaya 154 Shloka 95 - Mahabharata | Thai | Vedapath

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Shloka 95

Dama-pradhāna-dharma (Self-restraint as the Root of Dharma) — Śānti-parva 154

Devanagari script

गृध्र उवाच अयं प्रेतसमाकीर्णो यक्षराक्षससेवित: । दारुण: काननोददेश: कौशिकैरभिनादित:

Transliteration

gṛdhra uvāca | ayaṃ pretasamākīrṇo yakṣarākṣasasevitaḥ | dāruṇaḥ kānanoddeśaḥ kauśikair abhināditaḥ ||

Translation

แร้งกล่าวว่า “โอ้มนุษย์ทั้งหลาย ผืนป่าแถบนี้แน่นขนัดด้วยวิญญาณเร่ร่อน และเป็นที่สัญจรของยักษะกับรากษส. เป็นพงไพรอันโหดร้ายน่าหวาดหวั่น ก้องด้วยเสียงนกเค้า. เพราะฉะนั้นสถานที่นี้น่าสะพรึงกลัวยิ่งนัก.”

Word by Word

गृध्रःthe vulture

उवाचsaid

अयम्this

प्रेत-समाकीर्णःfilled with spirits/ghosts

यक्ष-राक्षस-सेवितःinhabited/haunted by yakṣas and rākṣasas

दारुणःterrible, dreadful

कानन-उद्देशःa region/tract of forest

कौशिकैःby owls

अभिनादितःresounding (loudly), made noisy

Speaker

गृध्र उवाच

Characters & Entities

Gṛdhra (vulture)

preta (spirits)

Yakṣas

Rākṣasas

kauśika (owl)

kānana (forest tract)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse underscores prudent discernment: when signs indicate danger—whether natural (a harsh wilderness) or symbolic (spirits, ominous cries)—one should not proceed blindly. Ethical action includes caution, situational awareness, and avoiding needless risk.

What is happening in the narrative?

A vulture addresses a person (implied by the context) and warns that the surrounding forest-region is frightening and perilous, described as crowded with spirits, inhabited by Yakṣas and Rākṣasas, and echoing with the calls of owls—an ominous soundscape signaling danger.