To day's Subhashit.

केशवं पतितं दृष्टवा  पाण्ड्वा : हर्षनिर्भरा:

रुदन्ति कौरवाः सर्वे हा हा केशव केशव.

Keshavam patitam drushtwaa Pandwaah harshnirbharaah

Rudanti Kauravaah sarve ha ha Keshav Keshav.

This is a special type of subhashit known as 'Koot Shloka', which implies that one can interpret  the shloka in two different ways having just the opposite meaning. This is due to either a word having two meaning or by 'sandhi viccheda' (breaking a combination of two words into its components).  In the above shloka the word 'Keshav' by use of sandhi viccheda becomes Ke + Shava (ke= water and shava = cadaver (dead body). 

The word 'Keshav' taken as a whole means  Lord Krishna,.The word Pandav has two meanings  i.e. (i) five sons of Kunti as a group called 'Pandava' and (ii) fish in water    Similarly Kaurava has also two meanings , namely (i) 100 sons of Dhritrashtra,the King and (ii) Crows.  (Kunti and Dhritrashtra are different characters in the famous epic known as 'Mahabharata".)

By interpreting the above shloka in the above manner we get the following two translations of the Shloka, which are just opposite of each other. Without knowing the background of the incident of Mahabharata we can not appreciate this shloka. A war was being waged between Kauravas and Pandavas. Lord Krishna was on the side of Pandavas, giving his services to Arjuna (one of the Pandavas) as his Charioteer(Saarathi). That is why Krishna is also known as "Parth Saarathi". So there was no reason for Pandwas being becoming elated on seeing Keshav's downfall.

1st meaning of the shloka.

By seeing Keshava falling down (dead) during the course of the battle, Pandavas became very happy , whereas the kauravas started weeping by saying 'Ha Keshav Ha Keshav'

2nd meaning of the shloka.

By seeing a cadavor (dead Body) lying in water, the school of fish became overjoyed and at the same time a bunch of crows started crowing loudly.

Patitam = fallen.    Drushtwaa = seeing       Harshnirbharaa =  became happy.

Rudanti = are weeping .     Sarve = all. 

To day's Subhashit.

लोभ मूलानि पापानि संकटानि तथैव च .
लोभात्प्रवर्तते वैरं अतिलोभात्विनश्यति.

Lobha moolaani paapani sankataani tathaiva cha.
lobhaatpravartate vairam atlobhaatvinashyati.

i.e.       Greed is the root cause of sins as also of dangers.  Greed also originates enmity and excessive greed ruins a person.

Lobha = greed , too much desire or appetite for money or food.          Moolaani = root cause, main reason.
Paapani =  sins.         Tatahiva = as also, similarly.          Cha = also.     Lobhat = due to greed
Pravartate = originates, produces.     Vairam =  enmity.         Ati = excessive, too much.
Vinashyati =  ruins, annihilates, destroys.
     

To day's Subhashit.

कुसुमं वर्णसंपन्नं गन्धहीनं न शोभते .
न शोभते क्रिया हीनं मधुरं वचनं तथा .

Kusumam varnasampannam gandhheenam na shobhate.
Na shobhate kriyaa heenam madhuram vachanam tathaa.

i.e.     A flower having bright colours but without any sweet smell is not adored. Similarly only pleasing talk (mere  promises) without being backed by any action is not liked by anybody.

Kusum = a flower.          Varnasampannam = having bright colour(s).        Varna = colour.
Sampanna = having, doing.           Gandh = odour, sweet smell.       Shobhate = adored, liked.
Kriyaa = action,  performance.       Heenam = without.         Madhuram = pleasing.
Vachanam = talk,  speaking.    

To day's Subhashit.

यथा एकेन हस्तेन तालिका न संप्रपद्यते
तथोद्द्यम परित्यक्तं कर्मं नोत्पाद्यते फलं

Yathaa ekena hastena taalika na samprapadyate.
Tathoddyama parityaktam karmam notpaadyate phalam.

i.e.     Just as with the palm of only one hand  no body can do clapping, similarly any task done without making strenuous and sincere effort can not produce the desired result.

Yathaa = for instance, just as.         Ekena =  by one.     Hastena =  palm of a hand.
Taalika = a clap made by striking  palms of both hands to applaud.     Na = not.
Samprapdyate = achieved, produced.    Tathoddyama = Tatha + uddyam.
Tathaa - similarly.   Uddyam = sincere and strenuous efforts made to achieve an objective. Boldness and willingness to try new line of action.
Parityaktam =  leaving, abandoning.       Karma = doing a job.     Notpaadayate = na + utpaadyate.
Utpaadayate  = produces.      Phalam = final result,  also a fruit.

(The Subhashit emphasises that any work done without proper enterprise , i.e.boldness and willingness to try a new line of action, does not produce the desired result. There is another saying in Sanskrit - उद्यमे नास्ति दारिद्रम्  -(udyame naasti daridram) i.e. an enterprising person can never be  poor, which also emphasises the spirit of enterprise.)

To day's Subhashit.

(The following Subhashit is an example of playing with words by the author in the praise of Lord Shiva. In Devnaagri alphabet, which is used to as a Script to write Sanskrit language, the alphabet is divided into many sub-groups called 'varga'.   Each 'varga' is named after the first word of the 'varga'. Pa(प ) varga contains words प(Pa) , फ(pha), ब(ba), भ(bha) , and म(ma). The author has mentioned different words associated with Lord Shiva, starting  with the words of  'Pa varga' in that order i.e.pa, pha,ba, bha and ma
e.g.Parvati his consort,  Phani (a snake),Baalendu (crescent moon), Bhasma (ash), Mandaakini ( river Ganges) in the descending order of 'Pa varga')

(पार्वती फणि बालेन्दु भस्म मन्दाकिनी युता  I
अपवर्ग प्रदा मूर्तिः कथं स्यात् तव शंकरः  I I

Parvati Phani Baalendu Bhasma Mandaakini yutaa.
Apavarg pradaa moortih katham syaat tava Shankarah.

i.e.    O Lord Shiva ! , tell me as to why your idol (moorti) which also has Parvati besides you, a snake on your neck like a garland,  a crescent moon on your forehead, ash smeared over your entire body, and river Ganges falling over your head, (if worshipped with devotion) will not bestow 'Swarga'  to the worshipper ?

Parvati = name of the consort of lord Shiva.        Phani = a snake.        Balendu = crescent moon.
Bhasma = ash .     Mandaakini = River Ganges, which brought from Heaven first landed over the                             head of Lord Shiva.         Yuta =  possessed by.          Apavarg = Swarg (heaven). It is believed that a righteous person, who worships God with devotion, achieves heavenly happiness (Swarga) after his death.          Apavarg pradaa = bestower of 'Swarga'- the heavenly happiness. 
Pradaa = giver.         Moorti = idol.        Katham = tell.        Syaat = perhaps, may be, why not.
Tava = yours.      Shankarh = Lord Shiva

To day's Subhashit

यस्तु संचरते देशान् सेवते यस्तु पण्डितान
तस्य विस्तारिता बुद्धिस्तैलबिन्दुरिवाम्भसि.

 Yastu sancharate deshaan sevate yastu Panditaan.
Tasya vistaaritaa budhistailabindurivaambhasi.

i.e.     A person who frequently travels to different countries and remains in the service of learned persons, his scope of intelligence is very wide,  just like a drop of oil which spreads over a wide area of water.

Yastu =  reference to a person, one who.       Sancharate = travels, roams.
Deshaan = different countries.        Sevate = remains in the service of.
Panditaan = learned persons.          Tasya = his.        Vistaaritaa = expanded,  wide.
Budhistailabindurivaambhasi = Buddhi + taila +bindu +iva+ambhasi
Buddhi = intelligence.         Taila = oil.         Bindu = a drop.     Iva = like.        Ambha = water.

( The subhashit emphasises that a widely travelled person who keeps the company of learned persons becomes very intelligent due to his association with them , citing the example of a drop of oil which spreads evenly over water making a thin layer of oil.) 

To day's Subhashit.

काव्यं करोति सुकविः सहृदय एव व्यनक्ति तत्त्वम्
रत्नं खनिः प्रसूते रचयति शिल्पि तो तत्सुषमाम् .

Kaavyam karoti sukavih sahrudaya evaa vyanakti tatwam.
ratnam khanih prasute rachayati shilpi to tatsushamaam.

i.e.   An expert poet composes an anthology of poems and another kind-hearted person gives it wide publicity by publishing it in a nice book form, just like rough precious stones extracted from a mine after being  cut and polishes by an expert artisan become more beautiful, attractive and valuable..

Kaavya = a story told in verse.        Karoti = writes, produces.       Sukavi = a renowned poet.
Sahrudaya = kind-hearted.               Vyanakti = decorates, beautifies, circulates.
Tatwam = importance, prominence.         Ratnam = precious stones.         Khani = a mine
Prasute = produces, gives birth to.        Rachayati = crafted by cutting and polishing.
Shilpi = an expert artisan.   tat = to.       Sushamaam = beauty, attractiveness.