Svadhinaiva Samriddhir - Prosperity That Shelters Others
स्वाधीनैव समृद्धिर्जनोपजीव्यत्वमुच्छ्रयश्छाया। सत्पुंसो मरुभूरिव जीवनमात्रं समाशास्यम्॥
svādhīnaiva samṛddhir janopajīvyatvam ucchrayaś chāyā । satpuṃso marubhūr iva jīvanamātraṁ samāśāsyam ॥
Meaning of Svādhīnaiva Samṛddhir Janopajīvyatvam
Self-reliant prosperity is true prosperity, and genuine greatness lies in becoming a source of refuge and support for others. Just as shade and life are rare blessings in a desert, the life of a virtuous person is cherished for the sake of serving others and promoting the welfare of society.
Word by word
- स्वाधीना एवsvādhīnā eva
dependent on oneself alone, self-reliant
स्व + अधीन
Sandhi: svādhīnā + eva becomes svādhīnaiva.
- समृद्धिःsamṛddhiḥ
prosperity, full growth, abundance
सम् + √ऋध्
Becomes samṛddhir before janopajīvyatvam.
- जनोपजीव्यत्वम्janopajīvyatvam
the state of being that on which people subsist
जन + उप + √जीव्
Compound: jana (people) + upajīvya (to be lived upon) + tva (the quality of).
- उच्छ्रयःucchrayaḥ
height, rising up, elevation
उत् + √श्रि
Sandhi: ucchrayaḥ + chāyā becomes ucchrayaś chāyā.
- छायाchāyā
shade, shelter
- सत्पुंसःsatpuṃsaḥ
of a good man, of a virtuous person
सत् + पुंस्
Genitive singular; before marubhūr it appears as satpuṃso.
- मरुभूः इवmarubhūr iva
as in desert ground
मरु + भू
The Aryasaptashati reading is marubhūruha iva, 'like a tree growing in the desert'.
- जीवनमात्रम्jīvanamātram
merely the living, life alone
जीवन + मात्र
Jīvana also means water, which is what a desert makes one wish for.
- समाशास्यम्samāśāsyam
is to be wished for, is to be prayed for
सम् + आ + √शास्
Commentary
The verse lists four things and never says who owns them, so the listener has to supply the subject. Svadhina samriddhi is abundance that leans on nothing outside itself; janopajivyatva is the quality of being that which people live upon; ucchraya is the height that rises above the ordinary; chaya is shade given without a price. Every one of the four belongs first to a tree, and the word marubhu, desert ground, sets the scale: where the earth itself offers nothing, one standing tree is the whole difference between thirst and survival. The closing phrase is where the verse turns. Jivanamatram samashasyam says that only the living of such a person need be prayed for, because the fruit, the shelter, the stature and the shade already follow from what that person is. Jivana carries both senses at once, life and water, which is exactly the word a desert asks for. The test it quietly sets is a hard one: wealth that has to be propped up by others is not svadhina, and height that throws no shade is mere elevation. A person, an institution or a country becomes worth wishing for at the moment its own strength turns into somebody else's livelihood.
Original Post
More from Aryasaptashati
View source pageशुचित्वं त्यागिता शौर्यं सामान्यं सुखदुःखयोः। दाक्षिण्यं चानुरक्तिश्च सत्यता च सुहृद्गुणाः॥
śucitvaṃ tyāgitā śauryaṃ sāmānyaṃ sukhaduḥkhayoḥ । dākṣiṇyaṃ cānuraktiśca satyatā ca suhṛdguṇāḥ ॥
Purity, generosity, courage, steadiness in joy and sorrow, courtesy, affection, and truthfulness are the qualities of a true friend.
उद्यमः साहसं धैर्यं बुद्धिः शक्तिः पराक्रमः। षडेते यत्र वर्तन्ते तत्र दैवं सहायकृत्॥
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Effort, courage, patience, intelligence, strength, and valor prepare a person to receive the help of providence.
पात्रविशेषे न्यस्तं गुणान्तरं व्रजति शिल्पमाधातुः। जलमिव समुद्रशुक्तौ मुक्ताफलतां पयोदस्य॥
pātraviśeṣe nyastaṃ guṇāntaraṃ vrajati śilpam ādhātuḥ । jalam iva samudraśuktau muktāphalatāṃ payodasya ॥
Kalidasa's verse compares skill nurtured in a worthy recipient to rainwater becoming a pearl within an oyster shell.
More subhashitams on Character
View topic pageभस्मीकृतस्वार्थसौख्यपरिचर्चितविग्रहाः। स्वराज्ययोगनिर्मग्ना धन्यास्ते वीरयोगिनः॥
bhasmīkṛtasvārthasaukhyaparicarcitavigrahāḥ । svarājyayoganirmagnā dhanyās te vīrayoginaḥ ॥
The verse praises heroic practitioners who renounce personal comforts and devote themselves fully to self-rule.
ज्ञानवांश्च तथा वाग्मी कर्मस्वपि च निष्ठितः। एवं युक्तोऽपि न श्रेयान् यदि शीलविवर्जितः॥
jñānavāṃśca tathā vāgmī karmasvapi ca niṣṭhitaḥ । evaṃ yukto'pi na śreyān yadi śīlavivarjitaḥ ॥
Knowledge, eloquence, and skill in work do not make a person worthy of esteem if good character is absent.
शुचित्वं त्यागिता शौर्यं सामान्यं सुखदुःखयोः। दाक्षिण्यं चानुरक्तिश्च सत्यता च सुहृद्गुणाः॥
śucitvaṃ tyāgitā śauryaṃ sāmānyaṃ sukhaduḥkhayoḥ । dākṣiṇyaṃ cānuraktiśca satyatā ca suhṛdguṇāḥ ॥
Purity, generosity, courage, steadiness in joy and sorrow, courtesy, affection, and truthfulness are the qualities of a true friend.