Hello, everybody, I am trying to translate a passage from the Mahābhārata (3, 188), and I am struggling with the distichon 23. I am not sure as to whether I am understanding it properly. I am following the text available at https://bombay.indology.info/mahabharata/text/UD/MBh03.txt:
सरित्तीरेषु कुद्दालैर्वापयिष्यन्ति चौषधीः
ताश्चाप्यल्पफलास्तेषां भविष्यन्ति युगक्षये ||
My first problem is to determine the subject of वाोयिष्यन्ति (3rd person plural of the causative active future) in the first half of the distichon. I am assuming that it is the same as that of the distichon 22 (मानवाः):
अन्योन्यं परिमुष्णन्तो हिंसयन्तश्च मानवाः
अजपा नास्तिकाः स्तेना भविष्यन्ति युगक्षये ||
"People will steal and kill each other; they will be goat-herds, atheists and thieves at the end of the era."
If my guess is correct, then ओषधीः, in 23a, would be the direct object of वापयिष्यन्ति, and we could translate:
"At the banks of the rivers people will make herbs smell like mountain ebony,"
or, choosing other meanings for कुद्दाल and for the verb वा,
"At the banks of the rivers people will make to bestow plants with spades,"
which seems to make more sense, although Monier-Williams, s. v., does not refer the meaning "to bestow" to the Mahābhārata, but only to the Ṛgveda.
The second half of the distichon is also difficult for me, especially because of तेषां. I am not sure which (or whom) that form is referred to. I guess it is referred to the people (subject of the previous sentence), and then we could translate:
"And their plants will yield little fruit, at the end of the era."
Am I right?
Thank you very much in advance for any answer!
सरित्तीरेषु कुद्दालैर्वापयिष्यन्ति चौषधीः
ताश्चाप्यल्पफलास्तेषां भविष्यन्ति युगक्षये ||
My first problem is to determine the subject of वाोयिष्यन्ति (3rd person plural of the causative active future) in the first half of the distichon. I am assuming that it is the same as that of the distichon 22 (मानवाः):
अन्योन्यं परिमुष्णन्तो हिंसयन्तश्च मानवाः
अजपा नास्तिकाः स्तेना भविष्यन्ति युगक्षये ||
"People will steal and kill each other; they will be goat-herds, atheists and thieves at the end of the era."
If my guess is correct, then ओषधीः, in 23a, would be the direct object of वापयिष्यन्ति, and we could translate:
"At the banks of the rivers people will make herbs smell like mountain ebony,"
or, choosing other meanings for कुद्दाल and for the verb वा,
"At the banks of the rivers people will make to bestow plants with spades,"
which seems to make more sense, although Monier-Williams, s. v., does not refer the meaning "to bestow" to the Mahābhārata, but only to the Ṛgveda.
The second half of the distichon is also difficult for me, especially because of तेषां. I am not sure which (or whom) that form is referred to. I guess it is referred to the people (subject of the previous sentence), and then we could translate:
"And their plants will yield little fruit, at the end of the era."
Am I right?
Thank you very much in advance for any answer!