Mahabharata — Shanti Parva, Shloka 42

Dasyu-maryādā and Buddhi-guided Rāja-nīti (दस्युमर्यादा तथा बुद्धिप्रधान-राजनीति)

Devanagari script

पूजन्युवाच वैरं पञ्चसमुत्थानं तच्च बुध्यन्ति पण्डिता: । स्त्रीकृतं वास्तुजं वाग्ज॑ं ससापत्नापराधजम्‌

Transliteration

pūjanī uvāca: vairaṁ pañcasamutthānaṁ tac ca budhyanti paṇḍitāḥ | strīkṛtaṁ vāstujaṁ vāgjaṁ sasāpatnāparādhajam ||

Translation

普阇尼说道：“大王，仇怨起于五种根源——智者洞然明了。它生于：(一) 因女子而起的争夺；(二) 因宅第、田土或财产；(三) 因刻薄伤人的言语；(四) 因与共妻相关的冒犯（多妻之家内的争竞）；(五) 因往昔所作之罪过。”

Word by Word

• [{'term': 'vairaṁ', 'definition': 'enmity, hostility, feud'}, {'term': 'pañca-samutthānam', 'definition': 'having five origins

• arising from five causes'}, {'term': 'budhyanti', 'definition': 'understand, discern'}, {'term': 'paṇḍitāḥ', 'definition': 'the wise, learned persons'}, {'term': 'strīkṛtam', 'definition': 'caused by a woman

• arising from desire/competition involving a woman'}, {'term': 'vāstujam', 'definition': 'arising from vāstu: dwelling, house, land, property'}, {'term': 'vāgjam', 'definition': 'born of speech

• caused by words (especially harsh/insulting speech)'}, {'term': 'sasāpatnāparādhajam', 'definition': 'arising from an offense involving a co-wife (sapatnī)

• born of rivalry/resentment among co-wives'}, {'term': 'rājan', 'definition': 'O King (vocative address)'}]

Speaker

ब्रह्मदत्त उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Pūjanī
• King (Rājan)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Enmity is not random; it commonly springs from identifiable social triggers—sexual/romantic rivalry, disputes over property, injuries caused by harsh speech, domestic rivalry among co-wives, and lingering resentment from earlier wrongdoing. Recognizing these sources helps one prevent conflict through restraint, fairness, and accountability.

What is happening in the narrative?

Pūjanī addresses a king and classifies the typical roots of feuds into five categories, presenting a practical moral analysis of how quarrels begin and why wise people treat these causes with caution.