Shloka 8

Adhyāya 283: Varṇa-vṛtti, Nyāya-ārjana, and the Decline-and-Restoration of Dharma (वर्णवृत्तिः न्यायार्जनं च)

Devanagari script

ऊष्मपा: सोमपाश्चैव धूमपा आज्यपास्तथा

Transliteration

ūṣmapāḥ somapāś caiva dhūmapā ājyapās tathā

Translation

毗湿摩波耶那说：“有以热为食者，有饮苏摩（Soma）者，有以烟为生者，亦有饮酥油（ghṛta）者。”

Word by Word

• ऊष्मपाः: heat-drinkers (those who subsist on warmth/heat)
• ऊष्मपाः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: ऊष्मपा
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• सोमपाः: Soma-drinkers
• सोमपाः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: सोमपा
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• च: and
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च

• एव: indeed/also
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव

• धूमपाः: smoke-drinkers (those who subsist on smoke)
• धूमपाः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: धूमपा
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• आज्यपाः: ghee-drinkers
• आज्यपाः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: आज्यपा
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

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

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vaiśampāyana
• Soma
• dhūma (smoke)
• ājya (clarified butter/ghee)
• ūṣman (heat/warmth)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights diverse disciplines of tapas—different ascetics adopt different forms of sustenance and restraint—implying that spiritual striving can take multiple legitimate forms when grounded in self-control and purpose.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vaiśampāyana is listing categories of practitioners/ascetics characterized by what they ‘consume’ or live upon—heat, Soma, smoke, or ghee—within a broader discussion in Śānti Parva about religious observances, austerities, and paths of disciplined living.