महाभारतः mahābhārataḥ - book-5, chapter-39, verse-47

यत्सुखं सेवमानोऽपि धर्मार्थाभ्यां न हीयते ।
कामं तदुपसेवेत न मूढव्रतमाचरेत् ॥४७॥

47. yatsukhaṁ sevamāno'pi dharmārthābhyāṁ na hīyate ,
kāmaṁ tadupaseveta na mūḍhavratamācaret.

47. yat sukham sevamānaḥ api dharmārthābhyām na
hīyate kāmam tat upaseveta na mūḍhavratam ācaret

47. One should certainly indulge in that pleasure which, even while being enjoyed, does not lead to a decline in one's righteousness (dharma) and material well-being (artha). One should not undertake foolish vows.

Words meanings summery:

• यत् (yat) - that which, which

• सुखम् (sukham) - pleasure, happiness, joy

• सेवमानः (sevamānaḥ) - one who is enjoying or pursuing (the pleasure) (enjoying, pursuing, serving)

• अपि (api) - even while (enjoying) (even, also, too, although)

• धर्मार्थाभ्याम् (dharmārthābhyām) - from the spheres of dharma and artha (from natural law (dharma) and material well-being (artha))

• न (na) - not, no

• हीयते (hīyate) - does not diminish (one's standing) (is diminished, is lost, lags behind)

• कामम् (kāmam) - certainly (an emphatic particle) (indeed, certainly, willingly)

• तत् (tat) - that (pleasure) (that, it)

• उपसेवेत (upaseveta) - one should enjoy, one should pursue, one should practice

• न (na) - not, no

• मूढव्रतम् (mūḍhavratam) - a foolish vow, a senseless practice

• आचरेत् (ācaret) - one should practice, one should perform, one should do

Words meanings and morphology

यत् (yat) - that which, which

(pronoun)

Nominative, neuter, singular of yad

yad - which, what, that (relative pronoun)

सुखम् (sukham) - pleasure, happiness, joy

(noun)

Nominative, neuter, singular of sukha

sukha - happiness, pleasure, ease, comfort

सेवमानः (sevamānaḥ) - one who is enjoying or pursuing (the pleasure) (enjoying, pursuing, serving)

(participle)

Nominative, masculine, singular of sevamāna

sevamāna - serving, worshiping, enjoying, pursuing

Present Middle Participle

From root 'sev' (to serve, to enjoy) with the 'śānac' suffix.

Root: sev (class 1)

Note: Refers to the implied agent of enjoying the pleasure.

अपि (api) - even while (enjoying) (even, also, too, although)

(indeclinable)

धर्मार्थाभ्याम् (dharmārthābhyām) - from the spheres of dharma and artha (from natural law (dharma) and material well-being (artha))

(noun)

Ablative, masculine, dual of dharmārtha

dharmārtha - righteousness and material prosperity; the twin aims of human life

Dvandva compound of 'dharma' and 'artha'.

Compound type : dvandva (dharma+artha)

• dharma – natural law, righteousness, duty, virtue, constitution
  noun (masculine)
  Root: dhṛ (class 3)
• artha – purpose, meaning, wealth, gain, object, material prosperity
  noun (masculine)

Note: Here, in the sense of 'from/in respect to dharma and artha'.

न (na) - not, no

(indeclinable)

हीयते (hīyate) - does not diminish (one's standing) (is diminished, is lost, lags behind)

(verb)

3rd person , singular, passive, present (laṭ) of hīy

Present tense, 3rd person singular

From root 'hā' (to abandon) in passive voice or secondary conjugation ('hīy-').

Root: hā (class 3)

कामम् (kāmam) - certainly (an emphatic particle) (indeed, certainly, willingly)

(indeclinable)

Accusative singular neuter of 'kāma' (desire), used adverbially as an emphatic particle.

तत् (tat) - that (pleasure) (that, it)

(pronoun)

Accusative, neuter, singular of tad

tad - that, he, she, it (demonstrative pronoun)

Note: Refers back to 'yat sukham'.

उपसेवेत (upaseveta) - one should enjoy, one should pursue, one should practice

(verb)

3rd person , singular, middle, optative (vidhi liṅ) of upasev

Optative mood, 3rd person singular

Root 'sev' (class 1) with upasarga 'upa-' in the optative mood, middle voice.

Prefix: upa

Root: sev (class 1)

न (na) - not, no

(indeclinable)

मूढव्रतम् (mūḍhavratam) - a foolish vow, a senseless practice

(noun)

Accusative, neuter, singular of mūḍhavrata

mūḍhavrata - foolish vow, senseless practice, absurd ritual

Compound of 'mūḍha' (foolish) and 'vrata' (vow).

Compound type : tatpurusha (mūḍha+vrata)

• mūḍha – foolish, ignorant, confused, bewildered
  adjective (neuter)
  Past Passive Participle
  From root 'muh' (to be bewildered, to err).
  Root: muh (class 4)
• vrata – vow, sacred observance, religious practice, rule
  noun (neuter)

आचरेत् (ācaret) - one should practice, one should perform, one should do

(verb)

3rd person , singular, active, optative (vidhi liṅ) of ācar

Optative mood, 3rd person singular

Root 'car' (to move, to act) with upasarga 'ā-' in the optative mood, active voice.

Prefix: ā

Root: car (class 1)