Shloka 18

Devanagari script

अर्थन हि विहीनस्य पुरुषस्याल्पमेधस: । विच्छिद्यन्ते क्रिया: सर्वा ग्रीष्मे कुसरितो यथा,जैसे गर्मीमें छोटी-छोटी नदियाँ सूख जाती हैं, उसी प्रकार धनहीन हुए मन्दबुद्धि मनुष्यकी सारी क्रियाएँ छिन्न-भिन्न हो जाती हैं

Transliteration

arthena hi vihīnasya puruṣasyālpamedhasaḥ | vicchidyante kriyāḥ sarvā grīṣme kusarito yathā ||

Translation

Arjuna thưa: “Với kẻ trí hẹp mà lại thiếu của cải, mọi công việc và bổn phận đều bị đứt đoạn, tan vỡ—như những dòng suối nhỏ khô cạn trong cái nóng mùa hạ.”

Word by Word

अर्थेनby/with wealth (means)

हिindeed/for

विहीनस्यof one deprived (of)

पुरुषस्यof a man/person

अल्पमेधसःof the dull-witted (small-intellect)

विच्छिद्यन्तेare broken off/are disrupted

क्रियाःactions/undertakings

सर्वाःall

ग्रीष्मेin summer

कुसरितःsmall streams/rivulets

यथाjust as

Speaker

अर्जुन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Arjuna

man/person (puruṣa)

wealth/resources (artha)

small streams/rivulets (kusarita)

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?

Material means (artha) strongly condition a person’s capacity to sustain duties and projects; without resources, especially for the short-sighted, actions and obligations tend to collapse—hence ethical life must account for practical support, not ideals alone.

What is happening in the narrative?

Arjuna voices a reflective observation in the Shanti Parva’s discourse: he uses a seasonal metaphor—small streams drying in summer—to illustrate how a resource-less person’s activities and commitments get disrupted and fail.