Shloka 76

Vāraṇāvata-prasaṃsā and the Pāṇḍavas’ Departure (वरणावत-प्रशंसा तथा पाण्डव-प्रयाणम्)

Devanagari script

हूँ वैशग्पायन उवाच एवमुक्तस्तदा भीष्मो भारद्वाजमभाषत,वैशम्पायनजी कहते हैं--द्रोणाचार्यके यों कहनेपर भीष्मने उनसे कहा

Transliteration

vaiśampāyana uvāca | evam uktas tadā bhīṣmo bhāradvājam abhāṣata |

Translation

Vaiśampāyana sprach: Als Bhāradvāja (Droṇa) so geredet hatte, antwortete Bhīṣma ihm und führte den Dialog fort, der den moralischen und strategischen Kurs des Hauses der Kurus prägte.

Word by Word

वैशम्पायनःVaishampayana

उवाचsaid/spoke

एवम्thus

उक्तःhaving been addressed/said to

तदाthen

भीष्मःBhishma

भारद्वाजम्to Bharadvaja (Drona)

अभाषतspoke/addressed

Speaker

वैशग्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vaiśampāyana

Bhīṣma

Bhāradvāja (Droṇa)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

This verse functions as a narrative hinge: it highlights the Mahābhārata’s method of ethical inquiry through dialogue—elders and teachers respond to one another, and dharma is clarified not by slogans but by reasoned exchange within concrete family and political responsibilities.

What is happening in the narrative?

After Droṇa (called Bhāradvāja) has spoken, Bhīṣma responds. The narrator Vaiśampāyana marks the turn-taking in the conversation, signaling that Bhīṣma is about to give counsel or a considered reply that will influence subsequent events.