Shloka 3

अज्ञान–लोभयोः परस्परहेतुत्वम्

Mutual Causality of Ignorance and Greed

Devanagari script

कृत्स्नं नूनं स दहति इति लोको व्यवस्यति । यत्र त्वं तादृशो भूत्वा धर्ममेवानुपश्यसि

Transliteration

kṛtsnaṃ nūnaṃ sa dahatīti loko vyavasyati | yatra tvaṃ tādṛśo bhūtvā dharmam evānupaśyasi |

Translation

商那迦曰：“世人断言，此等之人必将万物焚尽成灰。然汝虽具此性，目光却唯系于法（dharma）——此非小奇也。”

Word by Word

• {'kṛtsnam': 'the whole, everything (entirety)', 'nūnam': 'surely, indeed', 'saḥ': 'he (that person)', 'dahati': 'burns, consumes by fire

• destroys', 'iti': 'thus (quotative particle)', 'lokaḥ': 'people

• the world (public opinion)', 'vyavasyati': 'concludes, determines, is firmly convinced', 'yatra': 'where/whereas

• inasmuch as', 'tvam': 'you', 'tādṛśaḥ': 'such, of that sort', 'bhūtvā': 'having become

• being', 'dharmam': 'dharma

• righteousness, moral law, duty', 'eva': 'only, indeed (emphatic)', 'anupaśyasi': 'you keep seeing/observing

Speaker

शौनक उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Śaunaka
• loka (people/the world)
• dharma

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse contrasts public expectation— that a harsh, intense nature will lead to destructive behavior— with the higher ideal of remaining oriented to dharma. True greatness is shown when one’s temperament or power does not override moral discernment.

What is happening in the narrative?

Śaunaka addresses a person reputed to be fierce or capable of great destruction. He notes that people assume such a person would ‘burn everything,’ yet expresses admiration that the addressee still looks only to dharma, highlighting moral steadiness amid a formidable disposition.