Verse 7.3-4

Sanskrit text, Unicode transliteration and English translation by Ganganath Jha:

अराजके हि लोकेऽस्मिन् सर्वतो विद्रुतो भयात् ।
रक्षार्थमस्य सर्वस्य राजानमसृजत् प्रभुः ॥ ३ ॥
इन्द्रानिलयमार्काणामग्नेश्च वरुणस्य च ।
चन्द्रवित्तेशयोश्चैव मात्रा निर्हृत्य शाश्वतीः ॥ ४ ॥

arājake hi loke'smin sarvato vidruto bhayāt |
rakṣārthamasya sarvasya rājānamasṛjat prabhuḥ || 3 ||
indrānilayamārkāṇāmagneśca varuṇasya ca |
candravitteśayoścaiva mātrā nirhṛtya śāśvatīḥ || 4 ||

At a time when the people were without a King, and were utterly perturbed through fear, the Lord created the King for the protection of all this;—(3) taking out the essential constituents of Indra, Vāyu, Yama, Sūrya, Varuṇa, Chandra and Kubera—(4)

 

Medhātithi’s commentary (manubhāṣya):

(verse 7.3)

‘Perturbed’—troubled, or unsettled.

‘Lord’—Prājapati.

This is a pure enlogium.—(3)

(verse 7.4)

‘Anita’ is Vāyu.

‘Vitteśa,’—the Lord of Wealth, Vaiśravaṇa, Kubera.

‘Mātra’—constituent parts.

‘Eternal’—i. e., essential.

‘Niṣkṛtya’—extracting, taking out—(4)

 

Explanatory notes by Ganganath Jha

(verse 7.3)

This verse is quoted in Parāśaramādhava (Ācāra, p. 391), to the effect that the king is the representative of the strong hand of the Law;—in Parāśaramādhava (Vyavahāra, p. 5), to the effect that the King comes down to the earth for the suppression of the thief and other evil-doers;—in Vīramitrodaya (Lakṣaṇa, p. 195), as to the effect that the king was created by Brahmā for the purpose of protecting the people;—and in Vīramitrodaya (Rājanīti, p. 15), which adds the following notes:—‘Arājake’ means ‘without a king’;—in ‘sarvataḥ’ the affix ‘tasil’ has the sense of the Ablative, and the word means ‘from all strong individuals,’—‘abhidrute’ means ‘oppressed,’—‘asya’ means ‘of this world’;—‘prabhu’ is Brahmā. In some places the reading is ‘vidrute’ (for ‘abhidrute’), which means ‘fallen off from duty’; and in this case the affix in ‘sarvataḥ’ will have the force of the Locative.—It then goes on to remark that the reading adopted by Medhātithi is ‘cakṣurdharmasya sarvasya’ (in the place of rakṣārthamasya sarvasya’) under which reading ‘bhayāt’ will mean ‘through fear of adharma,’—‘dharmasya cakṣuḥ’ will be the ‘seer,’ i.e., the propagator ‘of Dharma,’ i.e., the king who is known as the ‘source of Dharma.’

This is quoted in Rājanītiratnākara (p. 2a).

(verse 7.4)

This verse is quoted in Parāśaramādhava (Ācāra, p. 392);—in the same work (Vyavahāra, p. 5);—and in Vīramitrodaya (Rājanīti, p. 6), which explains that ‘anila’ is Vāyu, ‘vitteśa’ is Kuvera,—‘mātrā’ means portions—‘nirhṛtya’ means ‘extracting,’—‘śāśvatīḥ’ means ‘most essential’ or ‘most lasting.’—It adds that this verse may be construed with verse 3, the construction being ‘mātrā nirhṛtya (verse 4) rājānamasṛjat’ (verse 3).

This is quoted along with verses 5 and 6 in Rājanītiratnākara (p. 4a).

 

Comparative notes by various authors

(verses 7.3-13)

Mahābhārata (Parāśaramādhava-Ācāra, p.393)—‘All the deities are invisible; the king is the only visible deity, whose favour and disfavour bring about visible results. The king is the father, the mother and also the family of all those of noble families; the king is Truth and Deity; and the king is the great benefactor of the people. Let there be no doubt as to whether the king is the regulator of the time or time is the regulator of the king; for it is the king who regulates time. O King! in this world, the virtue of men is guarded by the king; it is only through fear of the king that people do not devour each other,’

Bṛhat-Parāśara (Vīramitrodaya-Rājanīti, p. 16).—‘Brahmā created the king with portions of Indra, Fire, Wind, Yama, Sun, Moon, Varuṇa, Kuvera and Īśāna.’

Bṛhat-Parāśara (Vīramitrodaya-Rājanīti, p. 20).—‘With or without cause, having his anger aroused, the king could burn the people; that is why people knowing the policy of kings call the king Fire.’

Nārada (Do.).—‘When the king becomes angry, with or without cause, he burns the people; that is why they call him Fire. When the king desirous of conquest has recourse to valour and marches against enemies, then is he called Indra. The king is called the Moon when, on the disappearance of anger and splendour, he appears before the people in a happy mood. When the king seated on the seat of judgment, awards punishments impartially to all creatures, then he is Yama. When the king bestows gifts upon learned men and dependents seeking for help, then he is called Kuvera. As among human beings, the king is without beginning and without end, and as he is endowed with splendour and purity, and as he deviates not from the right path, and as an impure man becomes pure by his word, and the pure becomes impure, wherefore should not such a king not be a god?’

Bṛhaspati (Do.).—‘Inasmuch as the king keeps the people pleased (rañjayati) by means of his four-limbed army, and shines with his splendid body, he is called the Raja.’

Aṅgiras (Do.).—‘Inasmuch as the king, by means of punishments, removes evil he is called the Guru.’

Mahābhārata (Do.).—‘In countries devoid of a king, Righteousness obtains no footing and people devour one another; fie, therefore, upon anarchy! Since the Veda declares the king to be Indra, he should be honoured by one who desires his own welfare, in the same manner as Indra. I feel that one should never live in a country where there is no king. In a country where there is no king, the Fire does not convey offerings to the gods. Such countries as have no kings are powerless whenever attacked by enemies.’

Vālmiki-Rāmāyaṇa (Vīramitrodaya-Rājanīti, p. 20).—‘In a country where there is no king, there is no safety of life or property; nor is the enemy able to bear any attack by enemies.’

Garuḍa-purāṇa (Do.).—‘Wealthy man, Vedic scholar, king, river, and physician,—in a place where these five are nor present, one should not take up residence.’

Śukranīti (l.141).—‘The king is made out of the paramount elements of Indra, Vāyu, Yama, Surya (Sūrya), Agni, Varuṇa, Chandra, and Kuvera; he is the lord of both the moveable and immoveable worlds.’