Sambhaji Maharaj Quotes With Meaning: Sanskrit Shlokas for Bio and Status
Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj is the rare king whose own words survive in Sanskrit. As a young man he wrote Budhabhushanam (बुधभूषणम्, "ornament of the wise"), a book on how a king should rule. Its opening verses are his own: praise of his grandfather Shahaji, his father Shivaji Maharaj, and a few lines about himself.
So here are Sambhaji Maharaj shlokas you can actually trace, for an Instagram bio, a WhatsApp status or a tattoo — each one complete, with how to read it, its Hindi and English meaning, and its true source. We start with the two lines most often printed with his picture — धर्मो रक्षति रक्षितः and यतो धर्मस्ततो जयः — which are far older than him, and say where they come from.
Sambhaji Maharaj Sanskrit shlokas with meaning
Every card is the whole verse. The Budhabhushanam text is from H. D. Velankar's edition (Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute, 1926). Where the old manuscript has a slip, the editor printed a correction in brackets; we give the corrected reading. The Manusmriti and Mahabharata verses are from standard scholarly editions.
तस्माद्धर्मो न हन्तव्यो मा नो धर्मो हतोऽवधीत्॥
tasmād dharmo na hantavyo mā no dharmo hato 'vadhīt
यतः कृष्णस्ततो धर्मो यतो धर्मस्ततो जयः॥
yataḥ kṛṣṇas tato dharmo yato dharmas tato jayaḥ
जगतः पतिरंशतोऽवतीर्णः स शिवच्छत्रपतिर्जयत्यजेयः॥
jagataḥ patir aṃśato 'vatīrṇaḥ sa śivacchatrapatir jayaty ajeyaḥ
यः काव्यसाहित्यपुराणगीतकोदण्डविद्यार्णवपारगामी॥
yaḥ kāvyasāhityapurāṇagītakodaṇḍavidyārṇavapāragāmī
प्रविशन्ति सदा लक्ष्म्यः सरित्पतिमिवापगाः॥
praviśanti sadā lakṣmyaḥ saritpatim ivāpagāḥ
करोति सद्ग्रन्थममुं नृपालः स शम्भुवर्मा बुधभूषणाख्यम्॥
karoti sadgrantham amuṃ nṛpālaḥ sa śambhuvarmā budhabhūṣaṇākhyam
तथा राज्ञा वर्तितव्यं स्वराज्यं परिरक्षता॥
tathā rājñā vartitavyaṃ svarājyaṃ parirakṣatā
श्रियः स्यात्परमं पात्रमपामिव महार्णवः॥
śriyaḥ syāt paramaṃ pātram apām iva mahārṇavaḥ
What Budhabhushanam is — and isn't
Sambhaji Maharaj says it himself in verse 1.16: he studied the old treatises and took their meaning. Apart from its opening verses about his family, most of Budhabhushanam is verses he chose from older works on statecraft and law — Kamandaki's Nitisara, the Manusmriti and others. So when we call a line from the book's later chapters a "Sambhaji Maharaj quote", what we really mean is: a line he picked out for kings to live by. That is still worth knowing. It shows what a young prince in the 1670s thought a ruler should read.
Famous "Sambhaji Maharaj quotes" that aren't his words
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धर्मो रक्षति रक्षितःOn our own Sambhaji Maharaj poster, frame and skin — as a tribute. The line is from the Manusmriti (8.15), and also appears in the Mahabharata (3.31.7, spoken by Draupadi). It is many centuries older than him.Manusmriti 8.15 · Mahabharata 3.31.7
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यतो धर्मस्ततो जयःA refrain of the Mahabharata, said by Bhishma, by Karna and by others. It is also the motto of India's Supreme Court. Not Sambhaji Maharaj's words.Mahabharata 6.62.34 and elsewhere
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Lines from Chhava and ChhaavaMany "Sambhaji quotes" shared today are dialogues from the 2025 Hindi film Chhaava or from Shivaji Sawant's 1979 Marathi novel Chhava, on which it is based. These are modern, in-copyright works, so we don't reproduce them — and they aren't his words.Film (2025) · novel by Shivaji Sawant (1979)
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देश धरम पर मिटने वाला…A much-shared Hindi poem about Sambhaji Maharaj. It is modern; we could not trace its author, so we quote only its opening.Modern Hindi poem · author not traced
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सिंहाच्या जबड्यात घालुनी हात…The Marathi line on our own poster. It's a modern line of praise for Maratha courage, not something Sambhaji Maharaj said or wrote. We could not trace who first wrote it.Modern Marathi line · origin not traced
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शिवरायांचे आठवावे रूप…A Marathi verse traditionally said to be Samarth Ramdas's letter to Sambhaji Maharaj, asking him to remember his father. If the tradition is right, these are Ramdas's words, not Sambhaji Maharaj's.Traditionally attributed to Samarth Ramdas
Questions people ask
Who said धर्मो रक्षति रक्षितः?
It is from the Manusmriti (8.15): “धर्म एव हतो हन्ति धर्मो रक्षति रक्षितः” — dharma destroyed destroys, dharma protected protects. Draupadi uses the same words in the Mahabharata (3.31.7). It is printed with Sambhaji Maharaj's picture because it sums up how he is remembered, not because he said it.
What does स्वराज्यरक्षक mean?
“Protector of Swarajya” — स्वराज्य, “one's own rule”, was the state Shivaji Maharaj founded, and रक्षक means protector. After his father's death in 1680, Sambhaji Maharaj held that state together for nine years against Aurangzeb's armies. The title itself is modern; it became widely known through the Marathi TV series Swarajyarakshak Sambhaji (2017–2020). In his own book he calls himself simply “Shambhuvarma”, the son of Shiva Chhatrapati.
What is Budhabhushanam?
A Sanskrit book on kingship written by Sambhaji Maharaj. It opens with his own verses about his family, then gathers verses on statecraft, conduct and wisdom from older texts. The standard edition was published by the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute, Pune, in 1926.
Why is Sambhaji Maharaj called छावा?
छावा is Marathi for a lion's cub — the cub of the lion, Shivaji Maharaj. The name became popular through Shivaji Sawant's 1979 novel Chhava and the 2025 film based on it.
Did Sambhaji Maharaj write in other languages?
Yes. Besides Sanskrit, he is credited with works in Hindustani — Nayikabhed, Saatsatak and Nakhshikha. We haven't quoted from them here because we couldn't check a reliable text.
Bring him home
