Bhartruhari’s Social Mirror-Indira Seshadri

Bhartruhari was a great poet, mystic, and king who hailed from the Malwa region of Madhya Pradesh about the 6th century A.D. In his work Niti Satakam (Verse 74), he analyzes the different types of people in human society – any society irrespective of its geographical location. The beauty of this verse is that even after 14 centuries, this yardstick is still perfectly relevant and helps us to understand the anatomy and pathology of our society.

The verse runs thus:

Eke sat-purushah parartha

ghatakah

Svarthan parityajya ye

Samanyastu pararthamu- dyamabhdtah

Svarthavirodhana ye;

Te mi manava-rakshasah

Para-hitam

Svartaya nignanti ye,

Ye ghnanti nirarthakam para-hitam

Te ke na janimahe.

"There are satpurushas or noble souls who sacrifice their own self-interest to work for the welfare of other people; the samanyas who form the majority who work for the welfare of the others without sacrificing their own self interest; the manava rakshasa who destroy other peoples’ welfare for their own self-interest. But what am I to say about those who sacrifice others’ welfare without gaining any good for themselves?"

© "Bhavan’s Journal" (June 30, 2003) published by Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, Kulapati KM Munshi Marg, Chowpatty, Mumbai 400 007. Website: www.bhavans.info. Reprinted with permission.

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