Shloka 29

Treasury Security, Protection of Informants, and the Kalakavṛkṣīya Exemplum (Śānti Parva 83)

Devanagari script

आशीविषमिव क्ुद्धं प्रभुं प्राणधनेश्वरम्‌ । यत्नेनोपचरेन्नित्यं नाहमस्मीति मानव:,राजा प्राण और धन दोनोंका स्वामी है। जब वह कुपित होता है तो विषधर सर्पके समान भयंकर हो जाता है; अतः मनुष्यको चाहिये कि “मैं जीवित नहीं हूँ” ऐसा मानकर अर्थात्‌ अपनी जानको हथेलीपर लेकर सदा बड़े यत्नसे राजाकी सेवा करे

Transliteration

āśīviṣam iva kruddhaṃ prabhuṃ prāṇadhaneśvaram | yatnenopacaren nityaṃ nāham asmīti mānavaḥ ||

Translation

毗湿摩说：君王为人之性命与财帛之主。其怒起时，凶可比毒蛇。故人当以大谨慎恒常事君，行若自念：“吾不计吾命。”亦即以命置掌，克己自持，警惕而行。

Word by Word

• {'āśīviṣaḥ': 'a venomous serpent', 'iva': 'like, as', 'kruddham': 'angered, wrathful', 'prabhum': 'lord, powerful master', 'prāṇa': 'life-breath

• life', 'dhana': 'wealth, property', 'īśvara / -eśvara': 'lord, master', 'prāṇadhaneśvaram': 'one who is master over life and wealth (here: the king)', 'yatnena': 'with effort, carefully, diligently', 'upacaret': 'should attend upon

• should approach respectfully', 'nityam': 'always, constantly', 'na aham asmi iti': '‘I am not (i.e., my life is as nothing)’—a stance of extreme caution/self-effacement', 'mānavaḥ': 'a human being, person'}

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Bhishma
• king (rājā)
• venomous serpent (āśīviṣa)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse warns about the dangerous volatility of royal power: since a king can affect one’s life and property, one should act with disciplined caution and respectful diligence, restraining ego and avoiding provocations.

What is happening in the narrative?

In the Shanti Parva’s instruction on rājadharma, Bhishma advises Yudhishthira about how subjects and attendants should conduct themselves toward a ruler, using the simile of an enraged venomous serpent to stress the need for careful service.