Hitopadesha [sanskrit]

8,857 words

The Sanskrit edition of the Hitopadesha referencing the English translation and grammatical analysis. Written by Narayana in the 8th century, the Hitopadesha represents a collection of short stories involving human and animal characters, instructing the reader on basic ancient Indian moral values and ethical conduct. Alternative titles: हितोपदेशः, Hitopadeśa, Hitopadesa.

Verse 4.26

ज्ञान-श्रेष्ठो द्विजः पूज्यः क्षत्रियो बलवान् अपि ।
धन-धान्याधिको वैश्यः शूद्रस् तु द्विज-सेवया ॥ २६ ॥

jñāna-śreṣṭho dvijaḥ pūjyaḥ kṣatriyo balavān api |
dhana-dhānyādhiko vaiśyaḥ śūdras tu dvija-sevayā || 26 ||

The English translation of Hitopadesha Verse 4.26 is contained in the book The Hitopadesa of Sri Narayana Pandita by Satya Narayana dasa. This book is not available online so in order to read the full text and translation you should buy the book:

Buy now! English translation by Satya Narayana dasa (1997)

Glossary of Sanskrit terms

Note: This extracts Sanskrit terms and links to English definitions from the glossary, based on an experimental segmentation of verse (4.26). Some terms could be superfluous while some might not be mentioned. Click on the word to show English definitions.

Jnana, Shreshtha, Dvija, Pujya, Kshatriya, Balavat, Api, Dhana, Dhani, Dhanya, Adhika, Vaishya, Shudra, Seva,

Analysis of Sanskrit grammar

Note: this is an experimental feature and only shows the first possible analysis of the Sanskrit text (Hitopadesha Verse 4.26). If the system was successful in segmenting the sentence, you will see of which words it is made up of, generally consisting of Nouns, Pronouns, Verbs, Participles and Indeclinables. Click on the link to show all possible derivations of the word.

  • Line 1: “jñāna-śreṣṭho dvijaḥ pūjyaḥ kṣatriyo balavān api
  • jñāna -
  • jñāna (noun, neuter)
    [compound], [vocative single]
  • śreṣṭho* -
  • śreṣṭha (noun, masculine)
    [nominative single]
  • dvijaḥ -
  • dvija (noun, masculine)
    [nominative single]
  • pūjyaḥ -
  • pūjya (noun, masculine)
    [nominative single]
    pūj -> pūjya (participle, masculine)
    [nominative single from √pūj class 10 verb]
  • kṣatriyo* -
  • kṣatriya (noun, masculine)
    [nominative single]
  • balavān -
  • balavat (noun, masculine)
    [nominative single]
  • api -
  • api (indeclinable preposition)
    [indeclinable preposition]
    ap (noun, neuter)
    [locative single]
    api (Preverb)
    [Preverb]
  • Line 2: “dhana-dhānyādhiko vaiśyaḥ śūdras tu dvija-sevayā
  • dhana -
  • dhana (noun, masculine)
    [compound], [vocative single]
    dhana (noun, neuter)
    [compound], [vocative single]
    dhan (verb class 1)
    [imperative active second single]
  • dhānyā -
  • dhānya (noun, masculine)
    [compound], [vocative single]
    dhānya (noun, neuter)
    [compound], [vocative single]
    dhānī (noun, feminine)
    [instrumental single]
    dhānyā (noun, feminine)
    [nominative single]
  • adhiko* -
  • adhika (noun, masculine)
    [nominative single]
  • vaiśyaḥ -
  • vaiśya (noun, masculine)
    [nominative single]
  • śūdras -
  • śūdra (noun, masculine)
    [nominative single]
  • tu -
  • tu (indeclinable particle)
    [indeclinable particle]
  • dvija -
  • dvija (noun, masculine)
    [compound], [vocative single]
    dvija (noun, neuter)
    [compound], [vocative single]
  • sevayā -
  • sevā (noun, feminine)
    [instrumental single]

Other editions:

Also see the following editions of the Sanskrit text or (alternative) English translations of the Hitopadesha Verse 4.26

Cover of edition (2015)

The Hitopadesa of Narayana
by M. R. Kale (2015)

Edited with A Sanskrit Commentary "Marma-Prakasika" and Notes in English; 9788120806023; Published by Motilal Banarsidass Publishers Pvt. Ltd.

Buy now!
Cover of Gujarati edition

Hitopadesa (in Gujarati)
by Dr. Narayan M. Kansara (2007)

[હિતોપદેશ]—[ડો. નારાયણ એમ. કંસારા] Sanskrit Text With Gujarati Translation; Published by Saraswati Pustak Bhandar, Ahmedabad

Buy now!

Preview of verse 4.26 in Gujarati sript:
જ્ઞાન-શ્રેષ્ઠો દ્વિજઃ પૂજ્યઃ ક્ષત્રિયો બલવાન્ અપિ ।
ધન-ધાન્યાધિકો વૈશ્યઃ શૂદ્રસ્ તુ દ્વિજ-સેવયા ॥ ૨૬ ॥

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