Shloka 80

देवतापितृप्रश्नः — Nārada at Badarīāśrama: the ultimate referent of daiva and pitṛ worship

Devanagari script

सोपानभूतं स्वर्गस्य मानुष्य॑ प्राप्य दुर्लभम्‌ | तथा55त्मानं समादध्याद्‌ भ्रश्यते न पुनर्यथा,यह दुर्लभ मानव-शरीर स्वर्गलोकमें पहुँचनेके लिये सीढ़ीके समान है। इसे पाकर अपने-आपको इस प्रकार धर्ममें एकाग्र करे, जिससे फिर उसे स्वर्गसे नीचे न गिरना पड़े

Transliteration

sopānabhūtaṃ svargasya mānuṣyaṃ prāpya durlabham | tathātmānaṃ samādadhyād bhraśyate na punar yathā ||

Translation

既得难得的人身——如同通往天界的阶梯——便当安住其心，专注于法（dharma），使自己不再从那更高的境地坠落。

Word by Word

सोपानभूतम्having become a ladder; serving as a step

स्वर्गस्यof heaven

मानुष्यम्human state; human body/life

प्राप्यhaving obtained

दुर्लभम्rare; hard to obtain

तथाthus; in that manner

आत्मानम्oneself; the self

समादध्यात्should compose/settle; should concentrate (himself)

भ्रश्यतेfalls; slips down

नnot

पुनःagain

यथाso that; in such a way that

Speaker

व्यास उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vyāsa

Svarga

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Human birth is rare and valuable; it should be used as a means of ascent by firmly establishing oneself in dharma, so that one does not relapse into a lower condition after attaining higher worlds or higher moral/spiritual standing.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vyāsa delivers an ethical instruction within the Śānti Parva’s didactic setting, emphasizing disciplined commitment to dharma after obtaining the difficult-to-attain human embodiment, portrayed as the ‘ladder’ to svarga.