The Great Epic of the Bhārata dynasty 5.33.57
Mahābhārata 5.33.57
- Language
- Sanskrit
5.33.57
traya evādhanā rājanbhāryā dāsastathā sutaḥ |
yatte samadhigacchanti yasya te tasya taddhanam || 57 ||
These two, O tiger among men, can pierce the orb itself of the sun, viz., a mendicant accomplished in yoga, and a warrior that hath fallen in open fight. O bull of the Bharata race, persons versed in the Vedas have said that men's means are good, middling, and bad. Men also, O king, are good, indifferent, and bad. They should, therefore, be respectively employed in that kind of work for which they may be fit. These three, O king, cannot have wealth of their own, viz., the wife, the slave, and the son, and whatever may be earned by them would be his to whom they belong. Great fear springeth from these three crimes, viz., theft of other's property, outrage on other's wives, and breach with friend. These three, besides, being destructive to one's own self, are the gates of hell, viz., lust, anger, and covetousness. Therefore, every one should renounce them. These three should never be forsaken even in imminent danger, viz., a follower, one who seeks protection, saying,--I am thine,--and lastly one who hath come to your abode. Verily, O Bharata, liberating a foe from distress, alone amounteth in point of merit, to these three taken together, viz., conferring a boon, acquiring a kingdom, and obtaining a son. Learned men have declared that a king, although powerful, should never consult with these four, viz., men of small sense, men that are procrastinating, men that are indolent, and men that are flatterers.
Translations (1)
- The Mahabharata of Krishna-Dwaipayana Vyasa — Kisari Mohan Ganguli 1883, English
Commentaries (1)
- Bhāratabhāvadīpa — Nīlakaṇṭha Caturdhara 1650, Sanskrit
Other recensions (2)
- Southern recension — Sanskrit
- Vulgate (Nīlakaṇṭha's text) — Sanskrit
Linked texts (1)
- Viduranīti — Sanskrit