Verse 7.204

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

आदानमप्रियकरं दानं च प्रियकारकम् ।
अभीप्सितानामर्थानां काले युक्तम् ?? ॥ २०४ ॥

ādānamapriyakaraṃ dānaṃ ca priyakārakam |
abhīpsitānāmarthānāṃ kāle yuktam ?? || 204 ||

The seizing of desirable property is productive of displeasure, and the giving of it is productive of pleasure; each is commended if done at the proper time.—(204).

 

Medhātithi’s commentary (manubhāṣya):

The non-giving of what should he given to the new king, or to any other person, is ‘productive of displeasure’; it causes displeasure; and the giving of it is ‘productive of pleasure’. Both these facts are well known;—that the giving of what is desired causes pleasure, and the witholding of it causes pain.

^‘Each is commended when done at the proper time’;—at one time any gift however small causes pleasure, while at another time a poor gift, or a small one, causes no pleasure at all. Hence the seizing and giving away of property should be done after full consideration of the peculiarity of the time,—(204).

All that has gone before and what is going to be described below,—all this is ‘dependent’ &c. &c. (says the next verse.)

 

Explanatory notes by Ganganath Jha

This verse is quoted in Vīramitrodaya, (Rājanīti, p. 410), which adds the following notes:—‘Abhīpsitānām,’ ‘required by, the king selected from among the family of the late king, and by his ministers,’—‘arthānām,’ ‘of things,’—‘ādānam,’ ‘the taking away,’—which is ‘apriyakaram,’—‘disagreeable,’—and ‘dānam’, ‘giving away’—which is ‘priyakārakam’ to them;—in as much as it is only if he were fully equipped with the necessary elephants, horses and wealth that the new king could hope to be safe against other kings, the presentation of such things at the time of installation is ‘kāle yuktam,’ ‘highly opportune,’—and hence ‘praśasyate,’ ‘is commended.’