Shloka 54

Adhyāya 166: Kṛtaghna-doṣa (कृतघ्नदोषः) — the fault of ingratitude and the limits of expiation

Devanagari script

एवं तु समभिज्ञातामात्रेयीं वा निपातयेत्‌

Transliteration

evaṁ tu samabhijñātāmātreyīṁ vā nipātayet

Translation

یوں جب وہ صاف طور پر ‘ماتریئی’ کے طور پر پہچان لی جائے تو اسے گرا دینا (نِپات کرنا/دبوچ لینا) چاہیے۔

Word by Word

• एवम्: thus, in this manner
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एवम्

• तु: but, however
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु

• समभिज्ञातामात्रेयीम्: Maitreyi who has been fully recognized/identified
• समभिज्ञातामात्रेयीम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: समभिज्ञातामात्रेयी
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Singular

• वा: or
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: वा

• निपातयेत्: should cause to fall / should throw down / should make (her) fall
• Type: Verb
• Root: नि-पत्
• Form: Optative (Vidhi-lin), 3rd, Singular, Parasmaipada, Parasmaipada

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Bhīṣma
• Mātreyī

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Act only after clear recognition and certainty; once identification is established, one must carry out the required duty decisively, without confusion or hesitation.

What is happening in the narrative?

Bhīṣma is giving a prescriptive instruction: after confirming that the person in question is Mātreyī, one should proceed to ‘nipātayet’—to have her brought down/struck down—indicating a decisive action conditioned on correct identification.