Shloka 30

धृतराष्ट्रस्य पश्चात्तापः तथा वनप्रस्थानानुज्ञा | Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s Remorse and Request for Forest-Retirement

Devanagari script

उग्रदण्डप्रधानाश्न मिथ्या व्याहारिणस्तथा । आक्रोष्टारश्न लुब्धाश्न हर्तार: साहसप्रिया:

Transliteration

ugradaṇḍapradhānāś ca mithyāvyāhāriṇas tathā | ākroṣṭāraś ca lubdhāś ca hartāraḥ sāhasapriyāḥ ||

Translation

毗湿摩波耶那说道：“凡官吏以苛刑为先、妄断虚判、言语辱骂、贪婪夺财、嗜好鲁莽暴行者——此等人当酌量时地，或以黄金罚金惩治，或在情势所当之处，处以死刑。”

Word by Word

• उग्रदण्डप्रधानाः: those chiefly devoted to harsh punishment
• उग्रदण्डप्रधानाः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: उग्रदण्डप्रधान
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• मिथ्या: falsely
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: मिथ्या

• व्याहारिणः: speakers/utterers (i.e., those who give pronouncements)
• व्याहारिणः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: व्याहारिन्
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• तथा: and also/likewise
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तथा

• आक्रोष्टारः: abusers, revilers
• आक्रोष्टारः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: आक्रोष्टृ
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• लुब्धाः: greedy
• लुब्धाः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: लुब्ध
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• हर्तारः: robbers, takers away
• हर्तारः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: हर्तृ
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• साहसप्रियाः: fond of violence/rashness
• साहसप्रियाः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: साहसप्रिय
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vaiśaṃpāyana

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse condemns corrupt and violent judicial conduct—false judgments, greed, abuse, and unlawful seizure—and teaches that rulers must uphold dharma by punishing such officials appropriately, using fines or even capital punishment when necessary, with due regard to context (deśa-kāla).

What is happening in the narrative?

Vaiśaṃpāyana is describing standards of governance and justice in the Ashramavāsika context, listing types of unethical officials and stating the proper royal response: proportionate punishment to protect social order and moral law.