Mahabharata — Anushasana Parva, Shloka 13
Devanagari script
अनु त्वां तात जीवन्तु मित्राणि सुहृदस्तथा । चैत्यस्थाने स्थितं वृक्षं फलवन्तमिव द्विजा:
Transliteration
anu tvāṃ tāta jīvantu mitrāṇi suhṛdas tathā | caityasthāne sthitaṃ vṛkṣaṃ phalavantam iva dvijāḥ ||
Translation
毗舍摩波耶那说：“孩子啊，愿你的朋友与善意之人都在你的庇护下得以存身——正如群鸟聚集，在立于圣祠旁、果实累累的树上栖居。”
Word by Word
अनुafter; following; in accordance with
अनु:
TypeIndeclinable
Rootअनु
त्वाम्you
त्वाम्:
Karma
TypeNoun
Rootयुष्मद्
Form—, Accusative, Singular
तातdear (son/child); O dear one
तात:
TypeNoun
Rootतात
FormMasculine, Vocative, Singular
जीवन्तुlet (them) live; may (they) live
जीवन्तु:
TypeVerb
Rootजीव्
FormImperative (Vidhi-lin), 3rd, Plural, Parasmaipada
मित्राणिfriends
मित्राणि:
Karta
TypeNoun
Rootमित्र
FormNeuter, Nominative, Plural
सुहृदःwell-wishers; good-hearted friends
सुहृदः:
Karta
TypeNoun
Rootसुहृद्
FormMasculine, Nominative, Plural
तथाso; likewise; in the same way
तथा:
TypeIndeclinable
Rootतथा
चैत्यस्थानेin a sacred/shrine-place
चैत्यस्थाने:
Adhikarana
TypeNoun
Rootचैत्यस्थान
FormNeuter, Locative, Singular
स्थितम्standing; situated
स्थितम्:
TypeVerb
Rootस्था
FormPast passive participle (क्त), Masculine, Accusative, Singular
वृक्षम्tree
वृक्षम्:
Karma
TypeNoun
Rootवृक्ष
FormMasculine, Accusative, Singular
फलवन्तम्fruit-bearing
फलवन्तम्:
TypeAdjective
Rootफलवत्
FormMasculine, Accusative, Singular
इवlike; as if
इव:
TypeIndeclinable
Rootइव
द्विजाःtwice-born; (here) birds
द्विजाः:
Karta
TypeNoun
Rootद्विज
FormMasculine, Nominative, Plural
Speaker
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Characters & Entities
V
VaiśaṃpāyanaC
caitya (shrine/sacred place)V
vṛkṣa (fruit-bearing tree)D
dvijāḥ (birds, metaphor)Character Dynamics
Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)
Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)
Philosophical Teaching
Political Layer
Geographic Context
Meter (Chandas)
Sandhi Notes
Educational Q&A
A righteous person—especially one in a position of strength—should become a refuge for friends and well-wishers, sustaining them through protection and support, like a fruitful tree that naturally nourishes those who take shelter in it.
Vaiśaṃpāyana uses a vivid simile: as birds gather around a fruit-bearing tree near a sacred shrine, so should the listener’s companions and well-wishers live depending on him—indicating his role as a stable, beneficent support within the moral order.