Where these five are not, don't make residence there.
धनिकः श्रोत्रियो राजा नदी वैद्यस्तु पंचमः ।
पंच यत्र न विद्यन्ते तत्र वासं न कारयेत् ॥
dhanikaḥ shrotriyo rājā nadī vaidyastu pañchamaḥ ।
pañcha yatra na vidyante tatra vāsaṃ na kārayet ॥
Continuing from the previous post on where not to live, we come to the next shloka that describes a place where not to live. In the last post we saw that one should not live where there is no respect, livelihood, relatives or knowledge. That was from personal standpoint.
From a social standpoint, one should make sure that five things are present where one wants to move and live, or one should move out if these five are not present.
Financial system
This is what is meant by dhanikaḥ (धनिकः). Today, we need a financial institution like a bank to keep our money safe or to take an occasional loan when needed. We discuss which bank offers better rates on loans, credit cards, mortgages, etc. People engage in revolving credit in a vain attempt to escape interest while still keeping the loan.
In India, even in ancient times, the role of the rich man was important. Śhreṣhṭhī (श्रेष्ठी) means a rich merchant, from which the Hindi word Seṭh (सेठ) and the surname Shetty (शेट्टी), as in Shilpa Shetty, are derived. These come from the Sanskrit word śhreṣhṭha (श्रेष्ठ), meaning "better." India’s highly developed arithmetic and algebra also had a role in debt calculations. Complicated multiplication tables of 1.25 and 1.5 were taught in ordinary Indian schools as recently as three to four decades ago. For better or worse, the rich were needed for drought relief, wedding expenses, and safekeeping.
Educational system
A wise, learned man is what is meant by śhrotriyaḥ (श्रोत्रियः). Śhruti (श्रुति) refers to the Veda (वेद)—that which is heard. A śhrotriyaḥ is one well-versed in the Vedas, which contain not only religious and ritualistic knowledge but also immense wisdom on spiritual matters, human psychology, and social order. Proper study of the Vedas brings discipline in life and self-restraint. Such a wise person is always needed for the education of children, counseling of adults, or performing important life rituals such as birth, weddings, and death ceremonies. In today’s world, this would correspond to places of education and worship.
Legal system
Law and order are represented by the word rājā (राजा). Without an effective ruler, society becomes lawless and anarchic, defeating the goals of social cohesion—safety, prosperity, and peace. Be it external attacks or internal decay, crime, unemployment, or disorder, an effective ruler is necessary. A king is akin to today’s government, though some may argue that a king was even better. The word rājan (राजन्) comes from rajas (रजस्), meaning the active quality (guṇa). Society thrives on action, not renunciation. The renunciate guides, but the king propels. An effective ruler stimulates the economy, creates an environment for fruitful employment and entrepreneurship, and maintains law and order while protecting everyone’s interests.
Transportation and water system
nadī (नदी) means river. All great civilizations have flourished by rivers, and even today, major cities are built near them. In ancient times, rivers were a source of water and transport. Today, they have become industrial waste drains par excellence. Either way, we need good water supply (potable water) and efficient transport systems. Good infrastructure is the backbone of an economy, and clean drinking water is the backbone of life as we know it. It is tragic that today’s rivers are unsuitable even for the worst life forms, and drinking water is available only in plastic bottles—so much for progress.
Charaka चरक - the great sire of Ayurveda आयुर्वेद
Health care system
Vaidya (वैद्य) is a doctor. Āyurveda (आयुर्वेद) is the science of life and health. It is not witchcraft or superstition; it is a long tradition of serious study in medicine, surgery, and cosmetics. Not many people today are aware of the vast volume of Charaka’s (चरक) and Suśhruta’s work, which is among the most actively printed Sanskrit texts today. Interestingly, modern allopathic doctors are among the biggest consumers of these texts.
This fact was revealed to me when I visited a reputed Sanskrit publisher with a list of books marked from their catalog. I was told that most of the books I was looking for were out of print. So I asked, "What is being printed then?" The answer was—course books (for colleges), Āyurveda, astrology, and yoga.
Health is the most important aspect of life. The most extreme form of this truth is life or no life—your world exists only as long as you are alive. When you die, the world dies with you. So, do your best to stay alive! And being alive but not healthy is worse than death—for you have a mind that desires, but a body that cannot fulfill those desires due to poor health. Be it diabetes stopping you from sweets, arthritis from traveling, or obesity from eating, poor health restricts life in countless ways.
These are the basic pillars of a civilized society: financial, educational, legal, infrastructure, and health management.
As mentioned in earlier posts, and as seen in the Hitopadeśha (हितोपदेशः) itself, the compilation of Hitopadeśha borrowed śhlokas of great value from various sources. To ensure the copying was identifiable, the compiler modified a word or two so that the original was not quoted exactly—thus creating some confusion.
Here too, these śhlokas are taken from the Garuḍa Purāṇa (गरुडपुराण) (1.110.26), the last place one would expect to find a full course of subhāṣhitas (सुभाषित) in a Purāṇa! But it is true. What amazes me is that the compiler of Hitopadeśha had such a vast reading, had memorized so many śhlokas, and could recall and apply them as needed for the context. Today, even with search engines like Google and Wikipedia, this is difficult to achieve!
The version in the Garuḍa Purāṇa goes as follows (and means pretty much the same):
dhaninaḥ śhrotriyo rājā, nadī vaidyastu pañchamaḥ |
pañcha yatra na vidyante, na kuryāt tatra saṃsthitim ||
And in Chāṇakya Nīti, it appears as:
dhanikaḥ śhrotriyo rājā, nadī vaidyastu pañchamaḥ |
pañcha yatra na vidyante, na tatra divasaṃ vaset ||
And now the language aspects of the shloka -
dhanikaH = rich man
dhana = wealth
dhanika = one with wealth
shrotriyo = learned man
shruta = heard
shruti = vedas
shrotra = ears
shrotriyaH = one who is learned (in the vedas)
rājā = rAjA = king
nadī = nadI = river
vaidyastu = vaidyaH + tu
vaidya = medicine man
pañchamaḥ = fifth
pañcha = five
yatra = where
na = not
vidyante = do not reside (plural), vidyati (singular)
tatra = there
vāsaṃ = residence
na = not
kārayet = should do
(c) Shashikant Joshi । शशिकांत जोशी । ॐ सर्वे भवन्तु सुखिनः ।
