Shloka 47

Treasury Security, Protection of Informants, and the Kalakavṛkṣīya Exemplum (Śānti Parva 83)

Devanagari script

आशीविषै: परिवृतः कूपस्त्वमसि पार्थिव । दुर्गतीर्था बृहत्कूला कारीरा वेत्रसंयुता

Transliteration

āśīviṣaiḥ parivṛtaḥ kūpas tvam asi pārthiva | durgatīrthā bṛhatkūlā kārīrā vetra-saṁyutā ||

Translation

بھیشم نے کہا—اے بادشاہ! تم اس کنویں کی مانند ہو جو زہریلے سانپوں سے گھرا ہو؛ جس تک پہنچنا دشوار، قدم قدم پر خطرہ، کنارے چوڑے، اور کانٹے دار نرکٹ اور بید کی جھاڑیوں سے بھرا ہوا۔ جو فائدے کی امید میں تمہارے قریب آتا ہے، اسے پناہ سے زیادہ خطرہ ملنے کا امکان ہے۔

Word by Word

आशीविषैःby/with venomous snakes

परिवृतःsurrounded/encircled

कूपःa well

त्वम्you

असिare

पार्थिवO king

दुर्गतीर्थाhaving difficult fords/approaches

बृहत्कूलाhaving great/high banks

कारीराa kārīra-thicket (a kind of shrub/reed)

वेत्रसंयुताprovided/filled with canes (vetra)

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

Bhīṣma

pārthiva (the king addressed)

kūpa (well)

āśīviṣa (venomous serpents)

kārīra (thorny scrub/reeds)

vetra (cane/reed)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

A ruler (or any powerful person) should be approachable and safe for those seeking help; when one is surrounded by ‘poison’—anger, greed, cruelty, or corrupt associates—people who come near are harmed. Ethical authority requires inner restraint and a protective, not predatory, presence.

What is happening in the narrative?

In Śānti Parva, Bhīṣma instructs the king on dharma and proper conduct. Here he uses a sharp metaphor: the king is compared to a well that ought to provide relief, yet is rendered dangerous by serpents and obstructing growth—signaling that the king’s current disposition or environment makes seeking his aid perilous.