Several months have passed since I published anything on the venerable Bhartruhari. In this installment, I present one of my all-time favourites from Neeti Shataka.

Nindantu neeti nipunah yadi vaa stunvantu |

Lakshmiih samaavishatu gacchatu vaa yatheshtam ||

Adya eva vaa maranam astu yugaantare vaa |

Nyayaat pathah pravichalanti padam na dhiraah ||

Unmindful of the praise or the upbraid [...]

Harturyaati Na Gocharam Kimapi Shampushnaatiyatsarvadaa|
Hyaarthibhyahpratipaadyamaanamanishampraapnotivruddhimparaam||
Kalpanteshvapinaprasaatinidhanam Vidyaakhyamantardhanam|
Yeshaamtaanpratimaanamunjatanrupaahkastaihsahaspardhate||
Cast away thine vain pride O King(s)
Bow and make way, nay, treat men of
Learning as your equals, nay your superiors;
What chance stands your abundance in face of such Opulence
That thieves cannot rob
That provides them perennial delight
That does not dimish when distributed, nay–
That grows indeed, by distribution amongst its seekers and
Is [...]

Shaastropaskrutashabdasundaragirah Shishyapradeyaagamaa|
Vikhyaataah Kavayovasantivishayeyasyaprabhornirdhanaah||
Tat Jaadyamvasudhaadhipasyakavayohyarthamvinaapeeshvaraah|
Kutsyaahsyuhkupureekshakaanamanayoyairardhatah Paatitaah||
The King whose dominion is populated with
Scholars, poets and learned men famed for
Excellence, erudition, sweet speech, and a
Large retinue of disciples eking
Lives condemned to penury
Is indeed a king but in name similar to
An incompetent jeweller who errs in
Valuing precious gems unaware that
Their true worth depends not on his whim similar to [...]

Ed: Bhartruhari seems to have spent a considerable portion of his life preparing a catalogue of fools. Here’s one more verse on that, perhaps the last.
Varam Parvatadurgeshu Bhraantam Vanacaraih Saha|
Na Moorkhajanasamparkah Surendrabhavaneshvapi||

How agreeable it is to wander with
Wild brutes in dense forests and mountains than
In the company of imbeciles although the
Walk might be in Indra’s [...]

Shakyo Vaaraitum Jalena Hutabhukhchhatrena Sooryaataapo|
Naagendronishitaankushenasamadodandena Gogardabhau||
Vyaadhirbheshajasamgrahaisccha Vividhairmantraprayogairvisham Sarvasya|
Aushadhamasti Shaastravihitam Moorkhasya Naasti Aushadham||
One can put out fire dousing it with water,
Ward off the scorching sun with an umbrella,
Tame a rutted elephant goading it with a sharp hook,
Herd unruly cattle with a stick,
Cure disease with medicine,
Ward off poison with mantras for every known
Evil has a cure save [...]

Krumikulacitam Laalaalkinnam Vigandhi Jugupsitam|
Nirupamarasam Preetyaa Khaadannaraasthi Niraamisham||
Surapatimai Shvaa Paarshvastham Vilokya Na Shankate|
Nahi Ganayati Kshudro Jantuh Parigrahaphalgutaam||
Engrossed in joy the
Cur chews incessantly on
The putrid, worm-ridden, spit-drooling, fleshless piece of human bone oblivious in
Even the presence of Indra just as
The Knave knows no shame in
Cringing before another for worthless
Altruism, charity or largesse.
(Ed: This verse like several others [...]

Svaayattamekaantagunam Vidhaatraa|
Vinirmitam Chhaadanamagnataayaah||
Visheshatah Sarvavidaam Samaaje|
Vibhooshanam Mounamapanditaanaam||
Verily has (Lord) Brahma provided
The most powerful weapon to use as one pleases;
An ornament of the Ignorant,
Silence adorns the Illiterate in the company of the Erudite.
(As a complement, it is worthwhile to read this in conjunction with this quote: By silence I hear other men’s imperfections, and conceal my own.)
Yadaakinchit [...]

Vyaalam Baalamrinaalatantubhirasau Roddhum Samujjrumbhate|
Chhettum Vajramaneem Shireeshakusumapraantena Sannahyati||
Maadhuryam Madhubindunaa Racayitum Kshaaraambudhereehate|
Netum Vaanchhati Yah Khalaanpathi Sataam Sookhtairsudhaasyandibhih||
A rutted elephant can be calmed by tying it with tender lotus fibers
A hole can be drilled into a diamond with the Shirish flower
The salty ocean can be sweetened by adding but a drop of nectar
But none can drill sense into [...]

Here’s my next installment of the Neeti Shataka. The verses are in no specific order but they are kind of thematic: Bhartruhari talks about fools in these. The poet stretches the limits of exaggeration in two verses here if only to add greater force. The sheer ridiculousness of exaggeration serves its aim: read and judge [...]

As promised, I present the first few verses drawn from Bhartruhari’s Neeti Shataka. A brief introduction to Neeti Shataka is in order.
Neeti can generally be understood as a teaching/exposition of morality, conduct, wisdom, behaviour, prudence, and all of these. The Neeti Shataka does exactly this: at one level, it is a treatise on [...]