Shloka 45

Daṇḍa-svarūpa-nirūpaṇa

The Nature, Forms, and Function of Daṇḍa

Devanagari script

विद्या तपो वा विपुलं धनं वा सर्व होतद्‌ व्यवसायेन शक्‍्यम्‌ | बुद्धयायत्तं तन्निवसेद्‌ देहवत्सु तस्माद्‌ विद्याद्‌ व्यवसायं प्रभूतम्‌

Transliteration

vidyā tapo vā vipulaṃ dhanaṃ vā sarvaṃ hy etad vyavasāyena śakyam | buddhyāyattaṃ tan nivased dehavatṣu tasmād vidyād vyavasāyaṃ prabhūtam ||

Translation

毗湿摩说道：学识、苦行，乃至丰厚财宝——这一切皆可由坚决的努力而得。此努力寄于有身之众生，而受智慧所统摄；故当知，笃定精进乃成就一切目标之强而足的手段。

Word by Word

• {'vidyā': 'knowledge, learning', 'tapas': 'austerity, disciplined practice', 'vipulam': 'abundant, extensive', 'dhanam': 'wealth, riches', 'sarvam etat': 'all this (all such attainments)', 'vyavasāyena': 'by effort, determined resolve, enterprise', 'śakyam': 'possible, achievable', 'buddhy-āyattam': 'dependent on / governed by intellect', 'nivased': 'dwells, resides', 'dehavatṣu': 'in embodied beings, among those with bodies', 'tasmāt': 'therefore', 'vidyāt': 'one should know/understand', 'prabhūtam': 'great, powerful, abundant (as a means)'}

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Bhīṣma

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

All major human attainments—knowledge, ascetic merit, and wealth—are achievable through steadfast effort, and such effort is directed by the intellect; hence purposeful endeavor is a chief instrument of success.

What is happening in the narrative?

In Śānti Parva’s instruction on right conduct and governance of life, Bhīṣma continues advising the listener that practical resolve and industrious effort, guided by sound understanding, are central to accomplishing worthy goals.