Shloka 77
Puṣkara-Śapatha Itihāsa (Agastya–Indra Dispute at the Tīrthas) | पुष्कर-शपथ-आख्यानम्
एका तिष्ठसि का च त्वं कस्यार्थे कि प्रयोजनम् । पद्मिनीतीरमाश्रित्य ब्रूहि त्वं किं चिकीर्षसि
ekā tiṣṭhasi kā ca tvaṃ kasyārthe ki prayojanam | padminītīram āśritya brūhi tvaṃ kiṃ cikīrṣasi ||
قال بهيشما: «مَن أنتِ، تقفين هنا وحدكِ، ولأجل مَن جئتِ؟ وأيُّ غرضٍ جاء بكِ إلى هذا الموضع؟ وقد آويتِ إلى ضفّة هذه البحيرة المملوءة باللوتس، فأخبريني—ما الذي تنوين إنجازه؟»
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse models dhārmic inquiry: before judging an action, one should ask about identity, motive, and intended outcome. Ethical evaluation in the Mahābhārata often begins by clarifying purpose (prayojana) and intention (cikīrṣā).
Bhīṣma addresses a solitary female figure standing by the bank of a lotus-lake. He asks who she is, for whose sake she has come, what her purpose is, and what she intends to accomplish there.