Shloka 7

Dāna–Tapaḥ Praśaṃsā and Gṛhastha-Upadeśa

Maitreya

Devanagari script

अचिरेणैव कालेन कीट: पार्थिवसत्तम | प्रजापालनधर्मेण प्रेत्य विप्रत्वमागत:

Transliteration

acireṇaiva kālena kīṭaḥ pārthiva-sattama | prajā-pālana-dharmeṇa pretya vipratvam āgataḥ ||

Translation

بھیشم نے کہا—اے بہترین فرمانروا! تھوڑے ہی وقت میں وہ کیڑا رعایا کی نگہبانی کے دھرم کے سبب مر کر برہمنیت کو پہنچ گیا۔

Word by Word

• अचिरेण: in a short (time)
• अचिरेण: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: अचिर
• Form: Neuter, Instrumental, Singular

• एव: indeed/just
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव

• कालेन: with time/within time
• कालेन: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: काल
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Singular

• कीटः: the worm/insect
• कीटः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: कीट
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• पार्थिव-सत्तम: O best of kings
• Type: Noun
• Root: पार्थिव + सत्तम
• Form: Masculine, Vocative, Singular

• प्रजा-पालन-धर्मेण: by the duty of protecting subjects
• प्रजा-पालन-धर्मेण: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: प्रजा + पालन + धर्म
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Singular

• प्रेत्य: having departed (having died)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: प्र + इ (धातु)
• Form: Absolutive (ktvā-anta) from √इ with preverb प्र

• विप्रत्वम्: Brahminhood
• विप्रत्वम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: विप्रत्व
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular

• आगतः: attained/obtained
• Type: Verb
• Root: आ + गम् (धातु)
• Form: Past active participle (kta) from √गम् with preverb आ, Masculine, Nominative, Singular

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Bhīṣma
• Yudhiṣṭhira
• kīṭa (former worm/insect)
• brāhmaṇa-kula (brāhmaṇa lineage)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Righteous governance—protecting and sustaining one’s subjects according to dharma—has immense moral power and yields elevated spiritual results, even transforming a being of low birth into a higher rebirth.

What is happening in the narrative?

Bhīṣma tells Yudhiṣṭhira that a being who was formerly a worm practiced the dharma of protecting the people; after dying soon thereafter, he attained rebirth in a brāhmaṇa family as the fruit of that righteous conduct.