PANCHA TANTRA- SUBHASHITHANI-1

 SUBHASHITHANI:315

The Panchatantra  is an ancient Indian collection of interrelated animal fables in sanskrit verse and prose. The Panchatantra is a niti-shastra, or textbook of niti. The word niti means roughly “the wise conduct of life.”(AWRyder)

The five treatises(पञ्चतन्त्र) are:

1.Mitra-bheda- The Loss of Friends;  
2. Mitra-lābha- The Winning of Friends ;
3.Kākolūkīyam- On Crows and Owls ;
4. Labdhapraṇāśam- Loss of Gains ;
5.  Aparīkṣitakārakaṃ- Ill-Considered Action

We will see from now on various subhashithani from the Pancha tantra.

PANCHA TANTRA
कथामुखम्- Introduction

मनवे वाचस्पतये शुक्राय पराशराय स सुताय ।
चाणक्याय च विदुषे नमोऽस्तु नयशास्त्रकर्तृभ्यः ॥ १॥1

Salutations to Manu,Brihaspati, Shukra, Parasara along with his son (Vyasa ),Chanakya the genius ,the creators of treatises on morality and politics.

सकलार्थशास्त्रसारं जगति समालोक्य विष्णुशर्मेदम् ।
तन्त्रैः पञ्चभिरेतैश्चकार सुमनोहरं शास्त्रम् ॥ २॥2

Vishnu sharma has studied the entire collection of texts on morality in this world and has created this treatise containing five sections which is stimulating to the mind.

अजातमृतमूर्खेभ्यो मृताजातौ सुतौ वरम् ।
यतस्तौ स्वल्पदुःखाय यावज्जीवं जडो दहेत् ॥ ३॥3

Of the three types of sons- unborn, dead, and illiterate, the dead and unborn are better . They both give only little pain , but the foolish son would burn ( cause pain ) as long as life endures.

वरं गर्भस्रावो वरमृतुषु नैवाभिगमनम् ।
वरं जातः प्रेतो वरमपि च कन्यैव जनिता ।
वरं वन्ध्या भार्या वरमपि च गर्भेषु वसति-
र्न चाविदग्धान् रूपद्रविणगुणयुक्तोऽपि तनयः ॥ ४॥4

Better is an abortion, better if there is no union of parents, better is the  child is still born, it is better even a daughter is born, better if the wife be barren, it is better the child never leaves the womb, but never should a son be there who is not learned, though he may have other possessions like beauty and wealth.

किं तया क्रियते धेन्वा या न सूते न दुग्धदा ।
कोऽर्थः पुत्रेण जातेन यो न विद्वान्न भक्तिमान् ॥ ५॥5

What can be done with a cow that does not deliver a calf ,nor yields milk? What ia son worth who is not learned nor devoted to elders?

अनन्तपारं किल शब्द शास्त्रं
           स्वल्पं तथायुर्बहवश्च विघ्नाः ।
सारं ततो ग्राह्यमपास्य फल्गु
           हंसैर्यथा क्षीरमिवाम्बुमध्यात् ॥ ६॥6

Verily the science of words is vast and endless; Life on the contrary is short and beset with many obstacles; Therefore, its essence should be grasped and leaving out what is worthless , as milk is drawn from out of water by swans.

अधीते य इदं नित्यं नीतिशास्त्रं श‍ृणोति च ।
न पराभवमाप्नोति शक्रादपि कदाचन ॥ ७॥7

He who studies or listens to this treatise on administration and politics daily will never ever get defeated by even Indra.

SRI KRISHNAYA THUBHYAM NAMAH