Shloka 40

अध्याय २९७ — श्रेयः, धृति, दान-नियमाः

Welfare, Steadfastness, and Norms of Giving

Devanagari script

धर्मशास्त्राणि वेदाक्ष षडड़ानि नराधिप । श्रेयसो<र्थे विधीयन्ते नरस्याक्लिष्टकर्मण:,नरेश्वर! धर्मशास्त्र और छहों अंगोंसहित वेद पुण्यकर्म करनेवाले पुरुषके कल्याणके लिये ही कर्तव्यका विधान करते हैं

Transliteration

dharmaśāstrāṇi vedākṣa ṣaḍaṅgāni narādhipa | śreyaso 'rthe vidhīyante narasyākliṣṭakarmaṇaḥ || naraśvara ||

Translation

پاراشر نے کہا—اے نرادھپ! دھرم شاستر اور وید—اپنے چھ انگوں سمیت—اس انسان کے اعلیٰ ترین بھلے (شریَس) کے لیے ہی فرائض کا حکم دیتے ہیں جو بےکلفت اور بےآزار دل سے نیک عمل کرتا ہے۔

Word by Word

• धर्मशास्त्राणि: treatises on dharma
• धर्मशास्त्राणि: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: धर्मशास्त्र
• Form: Neuter, Nominative, Plural

• वेदाः: the Vedas
• वेदाः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: वेद
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• अक्ष: O Ax(a) (as addressed)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अक्ष
• Form: Masculine, Vocative, Singular

• षडङ्गानि: the six auxiliaries (Vedāṅgas)
• षडङ्गानि: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: षडङ्ग
• Form: Neuter, Nominative, Plural

• नराधिप: O lord of men (king)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नराधिप
• Form: Masculine, Vocative, Singular

• श्रेयसः: of welfare / of the good
• Type: Noun
• Root: श्रेयस्
• Form: Neuter, Genitive, Singular

• अर्थे: for the purpose / in the matter
• अर्थे: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: अर्थ
• Form: Masculine, Locative, Singular

• विधीयन्ते: are prescribed / are laid down
• Type: Verb
• Root: धा (वि + धा)
• Form: Present, Third, Plural, Passive (Ātmanepada form)

• नरस्य: of a man
• Type: Noun
• Root: नर
• Form: Masculine, Genitive, Singular

• अक्लिष्टकर्मणः: of one whose actions are not afflicted (i.e., of a virtuous doer)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अक्लिष्टकर्मन्
• Form: Masculine, Genitive, Singular

• नरेश्वर: O king / lord of men
• Type: Noun
• Root: नरेश्वर
• Form: Masculine, Vocative, Singular

Speaker

पराशर उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Parāśara
• narādhipa (the king addressed)
• Dharmaśāstra
• Veda
• Ṣaḍvedāṅga (six Vedāṅgas)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

That Dharmaśāstra and the Veda (with its six Vedāṅgas) exist to prescribe conduct aimed at śreyas—the enduring welfare and moral uplift of a person—rather than being ends in themselves.

What is happening in the narrative?

Parāśara is instructing a king in the Śānti Parva, emphasizing the purpose of scriptural injunctions: to guide human action toward the highest good, especially for those committed to righteous, untroubled conduct.