Anushasana Parva Adhyaya 130 Shloka 9 - Mahabharata | Chinese | Vedapath

Vyasa

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Shloka 9

Vānaprastha-dharma and Tapas: Śiva–Umā Saṃvāda

Forest-Stage Discipline and Austerity

Devanagari script

दशसूनासमं चक्रं दशचक्रसमो ध्वज: । दशध्वजसमा वेश्या दशवेश्यासमो नृप:,दस कसाइयोंके समान एक तेली, दस तेलियोंके समान एक कलवार, दस कलवारोंके समान एक वेश्या और दस वेश्याओंके समान एक राजा है

Transliteration

daśasūnāsamaṃ cakraṃ daśacakrasamo dhvajaḥ | daśadhvajasamā veśyā daśaveśyāsamo nṛpaḥ ||

Translation

毗湿摩说道：“榨油之人，算作十个屠夫；酿酒卖酒之人，算作十个榨油者；娼妓，算作十个卖酒者；而国王，算作十个娼妓。”

Word by Word

दशten

सूनासमम्equal to (a) butcher

चक्रम्a wheel; (here) a potter/oilman (by metonymy)

दशten

चक्रसमःequal to ten (persons called) चक्र

ध्वजःbanner; (here) a liquor-seller/distiller (traditional gloss)

दशten

ध्वजसमाःequal to ten (persons called) ध्वज

वेश्याःcourtesans/prostitutes

दशten

वेश्याः-समःequal to ten courtesans

नृपःking

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

Bhīṣma

nṛpa (king/ruler)

veśyā (prostitute)

cakra (trade designation: oilman/oil-press worker)

dhvaja (trade designation: commonly glossed as distiller/liquor-seller)

sūnā (slaughter/abattoir)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse underscores that the ethical weight of kingship is enormous: a ruler’s actions can affect vast numbers of people, so misuse of power can generate harm on a scale far beyond ordinary occupations. The escalating comparison functions as a warning about accountability in governance.

What is happening in the narrative?

In the Anuśāsana Parva, Bhīṣma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on dharma, including rājadharma. Here he employs a sharp proverbial-style hierarchy to emphasize how grave and far-reaching the consequences of a king’s conduct can be.