Shloka 18

Dvaipāyana–Kīṭa Saṃvāda: Karmic Memory, Fear of Death, and Embodied Pleasure

Devanagari script

जीवितं हि परित्यज्य बहव: साधवो जना: । स्वमांसै: परमांसानि परिपाल्य दिव॑ गता:

Transliteration

jīvitaṃ hi parityajya bahavaḥ sādhavo janāḥ | svamāṃsaiḥ paramāṃsāni paripālya divaṃ gatāḥ |

Translation

Bhishma sprach: „Wahrlich, viele tugendhafte Menschen haben sogar ihr eigenes Leben aufgegeben. Indem sie das Fleisch anderer mit ihrem eigenen Fleisch schützten—sich selbst für die Sicherheit des Nächsten opferten—erlangten sie den Himmel. So erhaben ist der Pfad des Schutzes durch Selbsthingabe.“

Word by Word

• जीवितम्: life
• जीवितम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: जीवित (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular

• हि: indeed/for
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: हि

• परित्यज्य: having abandoned/given up
• Type: Verb
• Root: परि-त्यज् (धातु)
• Form: ल्यप् (absolutive/gerund), Active

• बहवः: many
• बहवः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: बहु (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• साधवः: good/virtuous people
• साधवः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: साधु (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• जनाः: people
• जनाः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: जन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• स्वमांसैः: with (their) own flesh
• स्वमांसैः: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: स्वमांस (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Instrumental, Plural

• परमांसानि: others' flesh
• परमांसानि: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: परमांस (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Plural

• परिपाल्य: having protected
• Type: Verb
• Root: परि-पाल् (धातु)
• Form: ल्यप् (absolutive/gerund), Active

• दिवम्: heaven
• दिवम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: दिव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• गताः: gone (have gone)
• गताः: Karta
• Type: Verb
• Root: गम् (धातु)
• Form: क्त (past passive participle used adjectivally), Masculine, Nominative, Plural

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Bhishma

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse teaches that the highest dharma can involve self-sacrifice: truly virtuous people may give up even their own life and body to protect others, and such altruistic protection is praised as leading to heavenly merit.

What is happening in the narrative?

Bhīṣma is instructing on dharma by citing the general example of many righteous persons who protected others at great personal cost—so great that they offered their own flesh and life—thereby earning exalted spiritual reward (attaining heaven).