Shloka 54
पापात्म-धर्मात्म-लक्षणम् तथा निर्वेदेन मोक्षमार्गः | Marks of the Sinful and the Righteous; Dispassion (Nirveda) as a Path to Liberation
चिरकारिक भद्रं ते भद्रं ते चिरकारिक । यद्यद्य चिरकारी त्वं ततो5सि चिरकारिक:,“बेटा चिरकारी! तेरा कल्याण हो। चिरकारी! तेरा मंगल हो। यदि आज भी तूने विलम्बसे कार्य करनेके अपने स्वभावका अनुसरण किया हो तभी तेरा चिरकारी नाम सफल हो सकता है
bhīṣma uvāca |
cirakārika bhadraṃ te bhadraṃ te cirakārika |
yadyad cirakārī tvaṃ tato 'si cirakārikaḥ ||
Bhishma said: “Chirakārika, may good befall you—may good befall you, Chirakārika. If even today you have acted according to your nature of doing things after due delay and reflection, then your very name ‘Chirakārika’ will have proved meaningful.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhishma highlights the ethical value of restraint and thoughtful delay: when an impulse could lead to wrongdoing, pausing to reflect can protect dharma. Here, ‘acting late’ becomes a virtue if it prevents a harmful act.
Bhishma addresses a person named Chirakārika, repeatedly blessing him and remarking that if he has followed his characteristic habit of delaying action even now, then his name is truly fulfilled—implying that this delay was timely and morally significant.