Shloka 24

Udyoga Parva Adhyāya 132 — Vidura’s Counsel on Udyama, Yaśas, and Kṣātra-Dharma

Devanagari script

श्रुतेन तपसा वापि श्रिया वा विक्रमेण वा

Transliteration

śrutena tapasā vāpi śriyā vā vikrameṇa vā

Translation

خواہ شروتی کی تعلیم سے، یا تپسیا سے، یا شان و دولت سے، یا بہادری و پرाकرم سے—

Word by Word

• श्रुतेन: by learning / by sacred knowledge
• श्रुतेन: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: श्रुति
• Form: Feminine, Instrumental, Singular

• तपसा: by austerity / penance
• तपसा: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: तपस्
• Form: Neuter, Instrumental, Singular

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

• अपि: also / even
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अपि

• श्रिया: by prosperity / by fortune / by splendor
• श्रिया: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: श्री
• Form: Feminine, Instrumental, Singular

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

• विक्रमेण: by valor / by prowess
• विक्रमेण: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: विक्रम
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Singular

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

Speaker

वायुदेव उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vāyu (Wind-god)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse lists major sources of human excellence—learning, austerity, prosperity, and valor—implying that moral worth or rightful standing is not confined to a single kind of achievement; it can be grounded in multiple forms of merit, each carrying ethical responsibility.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vāyu is speaking and begins a statement by enumerating different bases of distinction (scriptural learning, ascetic discipline, worldly fortune, and heroic power), setting up a broader point that continues in the surrounding verses.