Shloka 22

अर्जुनदुःखहेतुप्रश्नः — Inquiry into the cause of Arjuna’s recurring hardship

Book 14, Chapter 89

Devanagari script

धरण्या निष्क्रयं दत्त्वा तद्धिरण्यं युधिछिर:

Transliteration

dharaṇyā niṣkrayaṃ dattvā taddhiraṇyaṃ yudhiṣṭhiraḥ

Translation

毗舍波耶那说道：在缴清“大地的赎价”之后，坚战（Yudhiṣṭhira）又将那同一批黄金施舍出去——表明财富纵为庄严仪式而得，也当以正当布施而净化，用于达摩之业，而非据为己有。

Word by Word

• धरण्याः: of the earth (land)
• धरण्याः: Sampradana
• Type: Noun
• Root: धरणी
• Form: Feminine, Genitive, Singular

• निष्क्रयम्: the purchase-price / ransom / compensation
• निष्क्रयम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: निष्क्रय
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• दत्त्वा: having given
• Type: Verb
• Root: दा
• Form: क्त्वा (absolutive/gerund), Parasmaipada (usage)

• तत्: that
• तत्: Karma
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: तद्
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular

• हिरण्यम्: gold
• हिरण्यम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: हिरण्य
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular

• युधिष्ठिरः: Yudhiṣṭhira
• युधिष्ठिरः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: युधिष्ठिर
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vaiśampāyana
• Yudhiṣṭhira
• earth (Dharaṇī)
• gold (hiraṇya)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Wealth connected with royal power and ritual should be handled ethically: obligations are first discharged (payment/compensation), and what remains is best sanctified through generous, dharmic giving rather than hoarding.

What is happening in the narrative?

In the Ashvamedha context, Yudhiṣṭhira pays a required compensation described as the earth’s ‘redemption-price’ and then donates that same gold onward, emphasizing public-spirited kingship and merit through giving.