Shloka 19

Adhyāya 189: Japa—Inquiry into the Jāpaka, Method

Vidhi), and Fruit (Phala

Devanagari script

प्रजा ब्राह्मणसंस्कारा: स्वकर्मकृतनिश्चया: । ऋषिभि: स्वेन तपसा सृज्यन्ते चापरे परै:

Transliteration

bharadvāja uvāca | prajā brāhmaṇasaṃskārāḥ svakarmakṛtaniścayāḥ | ṛṣibhiḥ svena tapasā sṛjyante cāpare paraiḥ ||

Translation

Wika ni Bharadvāja: “May ilang mga bayan na nilikha ng mga rishi sa pamamagitan ng lakas ng kanilang sariling tapas—taglay ang mga saṃskāra ayon sa Veda at matatag ang pasya sa pagtupad ng kani-kanilang nararapat na tungkulin. Sa gayon, mula sa mga sinaunang pantas, patuloy na nalikha ang mga sumunod na salinlahi ng mga pantas at mga pamayanan.”

Word by Word

• {'prajā': 'creatures

• progeny', 'brāhmaṇa-saṃskārāḥ': 'endowed with Vedic rites/sacraments and formative disciplines (saṃskāras) associated with Brahmanical tradition', 'sva-karma': 'one’s own prescribed duty/work (in accordance with one’s station and obligations)', 'kṛta-niścayāḥ': 'those who have made a firm resolve

• determined', 'ṛṣibhiḥ': 'by the seers/sages', 'svena tapasā': 'by their own tapas (austerity, ascetic heat, disciplined spiritual effort)', 'sṛjyante': 'are created/produced

• are brought forth', 'apare': 'others

• some others', 'paraiḥ': 'by others

Speaker

भरद्वाज उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Bharadvāja
• ṛṣi (sages)
• prajā (people/progeny)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse links social and ethical stability to two forces: (1) saṃskāra—Vedic formation through rites and disciplined education—and (2) niścaya—steadfast commitment to one’s own dharma (sva-karma). It also presents tapas as a creative, world-sustaining power in the hands of ṛṣis.

What is happening in the narrative?

Bharadvāja describes how sages, through their austerities, generated communities (and successive lines of sages/people) characterized by Vedic refinement and firm adherence to duty, indicating an ongoing transmission from earlier ṛṣis to later ones.