Shloka 8

Dharma-vyādha’s Analysis of Moral Decline and the Mahābhūta–Guṇa Schema (धर्मव्याधोपदेशः)

Devanagari script

ब्रह्मबन्धुषु यद्‌ दत्तं यद्‌ दत्तं वृषलीपतौ । स्त्रीजनेषु च यद्‌ दत्तं व्यालग्राहे तथैव च

Transliteration

brahmabandhuṣu yad dattaṃ yad dattaṃ vṛṣalīpatau | strījaneṣu ca yad dattaṃ vyālagrāhe tathaiva ca

Translation

Mārkaṇḍeya nói: “Bất cứ của bố thí nào trao cho kẻ chỉ ‘mang danh Bà-la-môn’ (không có hạnh Bà-la-môn chân thật), bất cứ của bố thí nào trao cho chồng của người đàn bà thuộc giai cấp thấp, bất cứ của bố thí nào trao cho nữ giới như một tập thể mà không phân biệt, và cũng vậy, bất cứ của bố thí nào trao trong lúc bị thú dữ hay kẻ cướp khống chế—đều bị xem là sự bố thí khiếm khuyết về đạo đức, vì được làm mà không xét đến người xứng đáng, mục đích và hoàn cảnh đúng đắn.”

Word by Word

• ब्रह्मबन्धुषु: among/with brahma-bandhus (unworthy Brahmins)
• ब्रह्मबन्धुषु: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: ब्रह्मबन्धु
• Form: Masculine, Locative, Plural

• यत्: whatever (that which)
• यत्: Karma
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: यद्
• Form: Neuter, Nominative/Accusative, Singular

• दत्तम्: given
• दत्तम्: Karma
• Type: Verb
• Root: दा
• Form: क्त (past passive participle), Neuter, Nominative/Accusative, Singular

• यत्: whatever (that which)
• यत्: Karma
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: यद्
• Form: Neuter, Nominative/Accusative, Singular

• दत्तम्: given
• दत्तम्: Karma
• Type: Verb
• Root: दा
• Form: क्त (past passive participle), Neuter, Nominative/Accusative, Singular

• वृषलीपतौ: in/with the husband of a śūdra-woman (low-born man)
• वृषलीपतौ: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: वृषलीपति
• Form: Masculine, Locative, Singular

• स्त्रीजनेषु: among womenfolk
• स्त्रीजनेषु: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: स्त्रीजन
• Form: Masculine, Locative, Plural

• च: and
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च

• यत्: whatever (that which)
• यत्: Karma
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: यद्
• Form: Neuter, Nominative/Accusative, Singular

• दत्तम्: given
• दत्तम्: Karma
• Type: Verb
• Root: दा
• Form: क्त (past passive participle), Neuter, Nominative/Accusative, Singular

• व्यालग्राहे: in/at the seizing by a beast (danger from wild animals)
• व्यालग्राहे: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: व्यालग्राह
• Form: Masculine, Locative, Singular

• तथा: thus/so
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तथा

• एव: indeed/just
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव

• च: and
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च

Speaker

मार्कण्डेय उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Mārkaṇḍeya (speaker)
• brahmabandhu (unworthy Brahmin by conduct)
• vṛṣalīpati (husband of a vṛṣalī)
• strījana (womenfolk)
• vyāla (wild beast/predator)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Charity (dāna) must be guided by discernment: the recipient’s worthiness and the context of giving matter. Gifts made to improper recipients or under coercive, fear-driven circumstances are portrayed as ethically flawed and spiritually unfruitful.

What is happening in the narrative?

Mārkaṇḍeya is instructing his listeners on standards of dharma, specifically evaluating types of giving. He lists examples of donations considered misdirected—given to unworthy persons or in compromised situations—within a broader didactic passage on righteous conduct.