यत्र स्त्री यत्र कितवो बालो यत्रानुशासिता। मञ्जन्ति तेऽवशा राजन्नद्यामश्मप्लवा इव
Where there is a woman, a gambler, a child, or one who is ruled over, O King, they are helpless and sink like stones in a river.
प्रयोजनेषु ये सक्ता न विशेषेषु भारत। तानहं पण्डितान्मन्ये विशेषा हि प्रसङ्गिनः
Those who are attached to purposes, not to distinctions, O Bharata—I consider them wise, for distinctions lead to entanglement.
यं प्रशंसन्ति कितवा यं प्रशंसन्ति चारणाः । यं प्रशंसन्ति बन्धक्यो न स जीवति मानवः
He whom gamblers praise, whom minstrels praise, whom prostitutes praise—that man does not truly live.
हित्वा तान्परमेष्वासान्पाण्डवानमितौजसः। आहितं भारतैश्वर्यं त्वया दुर्योधने महत्
Abandoning those supremely powerful Pandavas, you have placed the great burden of the Bharata kingdom upon Duryodhana.
तं द्रक्ष्यसि परिभ्रष्टं तस्मात्त्वमचिरादिव। ऐश्वर्यमदसंमूढं बलिं लोकत्रयादिव
You will see him fallen from that state, bewildered by the pride of power, like Bali cast down from the three worlds.
योऽभ्यर्चितः मद्भिरसञ्जमानः करोत्यर्थं शक्तिमहापयित्वा। क्षिप्रं यशस्तं समुपैति मन्त- मलं प्रसन्ना हि सुखाय सन्तः
He who is worshipped by us, yet acts without restraint, abandoning his strength for the sake of gain—such a person quickly acquires fame, for the virtuous, being pleased, bring happiness.
महान्तमप्यर्थमधर्मयुक्तं यः मन्त्यजत्यनपाकृष्ट एव। सुखं सुदुःखान्यवमुच्य शेते जीर्णां त्वचं सर्प इवावमुच्य
He who considers even great wealth, if gained unrighteously, as unworthy and untouched, sleeps peacefully, having cast off severe sorrows as a snake sheds its worn-out skin.
अनृते च समुत्कर्पो राजगामि च पैशुनम् । गुरोश्चालीकनिर्बन्धः समानि ब्रह्महत्यया
Falsehood, excessive pride, slander directed at kings, and persistent enmity toward one's teacher—these are equal to the sin of killing a Brahmin.
असूयैकपदं मृत्युरतिवादः श्रियो वधः। अशुश्रूषा त्वरा श्लाघा विद्यायाः शत्रवस्त्रः
Envy is the very abode of death; harsh speech is the destruction of prosperity; disobedience, haste, and boasting are the enemies of knowledge.
आलस्यं मदमोहौ च चापलं गोष्ठिरेव च। स्तब्धता चाभिमानित्वं तथा त्यागित्वमेव च । एते वै सप्त दोषाः स्युः सदा विद्यार्थिनां मताः
Laziness, intoxication, delusion, restlessness in assemblies, arrogance, pride, and also fickleness—these seven are always considered faults in those who seek knowledge.
सुखार्थिनः कुतो विद्या नास्ति विद्यार्थिनः सुखं। सुखार्थी वा त्यजेद्विद्यां विद्यार्थी वा त्यजेत्सुखम्
How can one who seeks pleasure gain knowledge? There is no happiness for the seeker of knowledge. Let the pleasure-seeker abandon learning, or the knowledge-seeker abandon pleasure.
नाग्निस्तृप्यति काष्ठानां नापगानां महोदधिः। नान्तकः सर्वभूतानां न पुंसां वामलोचना
Fire is never satisfied with wood, nor the ocean with rivers; death is never satisfied with all beings, nor a woman with men.
आशा धृतिं हन्ति समृद्धिमन्तकः क्रोधः श्रियं हन्ति यशः कदर्यता । अपालनं हन्ति पशूंश्च राज- न्नेकः क्रुद्धो ब्राह्मणो हन्ति राष्ट्रम्
Desire destroys resolve, death destroys prosperity, anger destroys wealth, miserliness destroys fame; neglect destroys cattle, and a single angry Brahmin destroys a kingdom, O king.
अजाश्च कांस्यं रजतं च नित्यं मध्वाकर्षः शकुनिः श्रोत्रियश्च । वृद्धो ज्ञातिरवसन्नः कुलीन एतानि ते सन्तु गृहे सदैव
Goats, bronze, and silver always; honey, dice, and a learned Brahmin; an aged, impoverished kinsman of noble birth—may these ever be present in your house.
अजोक्षा चन्दनं वीणा आदर्शो मधुसर्पिषी । विषमौदुम्बरं शङ्खः स्वर्णनाभोऽथ रोचना
A goat, a bull, sandalwood, a lute, a mirror, honey, clarified butter, an uneven fig tree, a conch with a golden center, and yellow pigment—
गृहे स्थापयितव्यानि धन्यानि मनुरब्रवीत्। देवब्राह्मणपूजार्थमतिथीनां च भारत
These auspicious things should be kept in the house, so said Manu, for the worship of gods and Brahmins, and for the sake of guests, O descendant of Bharata.
इदं च त्वां सर्वपरं ब्रवीमि पुण्यं पदं तात महाविशिष्टम्। न जातु कामान्न भयान्न लोभा- द्धर्मं जह्याज्जीविस्यापि हेतोः
And now I tell you, my son, the highest and most virtuous path: never abandon righteousness for the sake of desire, fear, or greed, not even for the sake of life itself.
नित्यो धर्मः सुखदुःखे त्वनित्ये जीवो नित्यो धातुरस्य त्वनित्यः। त्यक्त्वाऽनित्यं प्रतितिष्ठस्व नित्ये संतुष्य सन्तोषपरा हि सन्तः
Righteousness is eternal, but pleasure and pain are not; the soul is eternal, but the body is not. Abandon the transient and stand firm in the eternal; the wise are always content with contentment.
महाबलान्पश्य महानुभावान् प्रशास्य भूमिं धनधान्यपूर्णाम्। राज्यानि हित्वा विपुलांश्च भोगान्। गतान्नरेन्द्रान्वशमन्तकस्य
See those of great strength and noble conduct, who ruled lands filled with wealth and grain; having renounced kingdoms and vast enjoyments, they have all gone under the sway of Death.
मृतं पुत्रं दुःखपुष्टं मनुष्या उत्क्षिप्य राजन्स्वगृहान्निर्हरन्ति। तं मुक्तकेशाः करुणं रुदन्ति चितामध्ये काष्ठमिव क्षिपन्ति
When a son dies, nourished by sorrow, people lift him from their house, O king, and carry him out; with hair disheveled, they weep bitterly, and place him on the funeral pyre like a log.
अन्यो धनं प्रेतगतस्य भुङ्क्ते वयांसि चाग्निश्च शरीरधातून्। द्वाभ्यामयं सह गच्छत्यमुत्र पुण्येन पापेन च वेष्ट्यमानः
Another enjoys the wealth of the departed; birds and fire consume the body's elements; only merit and sin accompany a person to the next world, enveloping him.
उसृज्य विनिवर्तन्ते ज्ञातयः सुहृदः सुताः। अपुष्पानफलान्वृक्षान्यथा तात पतत्रिणः
Relatives, friends, and sons turn away and depart, just as birds leave trees that bear neither flowers nor fruit, O dear one.
अग्नौ प्रास्तं तु पुरुषं कर्मान्वेति स्वयं कृतम्। तस्मात्तु पुरुषो यत्नाद्धर्मं सञ्चिनुयाच्छनैः
The actions performed by a person, when offered into fire, follow him; therefore, a person should diligently accumulate righteousness, little by little.
अस्माल्लोकादूर्ध्वममुष्य चाधो महत्तमस्तिष्ठति ह्यन्धकारम्। तद्वै महामोहनमिन्द्रियाणां बुद्ध्यस्व मा त्वां प्रलभेत राजन्
Above this world and below it lies a vast darkness; it is the great delusion of the senses—be wise, O King, let it not ensnare you.
इदं वचः शक्ष्यसि चेद्यथाव- न्निशम्य सर्वं प्रतिपत्तुमेव। यशः परं प्राप्स्यसि जीवलोके भयं नचामुत्र नचेह तेऽस्ति
If you are able to fully understand and act upon these words as spoken, you will attain supreme fame among the living, and neither here nor hereafter will you have fear.
आत्मा नदी भारत पुण्यतीर्था सत्योदया धृतिकूला दयोर्मिः। तस्यां स्नातः पूयते पुण्यकर्मा पुण्यो ह्यात्मा नित्यमलोभ एव
The self is a river, O Bharata, with holy fords, truth as its sunrise, firmness as its banks, and compassion as its waves; one who bathes in it, performing virtuous deeds, is purified, for the self is ever pure and free from greed.
कामक्रोधग्राहवतीं पञ्चेन्द्रियजलां नदीम्। नावं धृतिमयीं कृत्वा जन्मदुर्गाणि संतर
Make a boat of firmness and cross the river whose waters are the five senses, and whose crocodiles are desire and anger, thereby overcoming the dangers of birth.
प्रज्ञावृद्धं धर्मवृद्धं स्वबन्धुं विद्यावृद्धं वयसा चापि वृद्धम् । कार्याकार्ये पूजयित्वा प्रसाद्य यः संपृच्छेन्न स मुह्येत्कदाचित्
One who, after honoring and pleasing a relative advanced in wisdom, righteousness, learning, or age, asks about what should or should not be done, will never be confused.
धृत्या शिश्रोदरं रक्षेत्पाणिपादं च चक्षुषा । चक्षुःश्रोत्रे च मनसा मनो वाचं च कर्मणा
With firmness, protect the mouth of a child, the hands and feet with the eyes, the eyes and ears with the mind, and the mind and speech with actions.
नित्योदकी नित्ययज्ञोपवीती नित्यस्वाध्यायी पतितान्नवर्जी । सत्यं ब्रुवन्गुरवे कर्म कुर्व- न्न ब्राह्मणश्र्यवते ब्रह्मलोकात्
Always pure, always wearing the sacred thread, always studying, avoiding fallen food, speaking truth to the teacher, and performing duties—such a Brahmin attains the world of Brahma.