Shloka 132

Varṇa-dharma and Rājadharma: Yudhiṣṭhira’s Inquiry and Bhīṣma’s Normative Outline (वर्णधर्म-राजधर्म-प्रश्नोत्तरम्)

Devanagari script

श्रिय: सकाशादर्शक्ष॒ जातो धर्मेण पाण्डव

Transliteration

śriyaḥ sakāśād arśakṣa jāto dharmeṇa pāṇḍava

Translation

毗湿摩说道：“般度之子啊，从吉祥女神室利（Śrī，福泽与昌盛）的临在之处，显现出清晰的征兆：昌盛由法（dharma）而生，亦由法而得以维系。”

Word by Word

• श्रियः: of prosperity/fortune
• श्रियः: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: श्री
• Form: Feminine, Genitive, Singular

• सकाशात्: from (the presence of), from near
• सकाशात्: Apadana
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: सकाश
• Form: Ablatival adverb (used with genitive)

• अर्शः: a mark/sign (interpreted here as a sign/omen)
• अर्शः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: अर्शस्
• Form: Neuter, Nominative, Singular

• जातः: born/arisen
• जातः: Karta
• Type: Verb
• Root: जन्
• Form: क्त (past passive participle), Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• धर्मेण: by/through righteousness (dharma)
• धर्मेण: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: धर्म
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental, Singular

• पाण्डव: O Pandava
• पाण्डव: Sampradana
• Type: Noun
• Root: पाण्डव
• Form: Masculine, Vocative, Singular

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Bhīṣma
• Pāṇḍava (Yudhiṣṭhira)
• Śrī (Lakṣmī)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Prosperity (śrī) is not merely luck or power; it is ethically grounded. Bhīṣma emphasizes that lasting well-being and auspicious success arise through dharma—right conduct, justice, and lawful means.

What is happening in the narrative?

In Śānti Parva, Bhīṣma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on dharma after the war. Here he addresses the Pāṇḍava directly, linking the presence of prosperity (Śrī) with the operation of dharma, reinforcing the king’s duty to rule righteously.