यत्र यत्र हतः शूरः स्वर्ग इत्यवशोक्तयः । धर्मे योद्धा भवेच्छूर इत्येवं शास्त्रनिश्चयः ॥ ३३ ॥
yatra yatra hataḥ śūraḥ svarga ityavaśōktayaḥ | dharmē yōddhā bhavēcchūra ityēvaṁ śāstraniścayaḥ || 33 ||
Translation
Sayings such as "wherever a hero is slain, there is heaven" are said loosely; a fighter in dharma is a hero: this is the settled view of scripture.
Word by word
- yatra
- wherever
- hataḥ
- is slain
- śūraḥ
- a hero
- svarga
- there is heaven
- iti
- thus
- avaśa
- loosely
- uktayaḥ
- are sayings
- dharmē
- in dharma
- yōddhā
- a fighter
- bhavēc
- (bhavet) is
- śūra
- a hero
- itya
- (iti) thus
- ēvaṁ
- this
- śāstra
- of scripture
- niścayaḥ
- the settled view
Meaning
Rāma might object with the common saying, which the first commentary quotes in full: "Staking others' lives with his own, weapons raised, wherever a hero is slain, there is heaven for him at every step." Vasiṣṭha answers that such sayings are spoken loosely (avaśa), by people carried along; read rightly, they mean the fighter in dharma. Scripture's own verdict is not the popular one.