Shloka 22
Ānṛśaṃsya–Bhakti: Śukaḥ Śakreṇa Parīkṣitaḥ
Compassion and Devotion—The Parrot Tested by Indra
अस्मिन्नहं टद्रुमे जात: साधुभिश्न गुणैर्युत: । बालभावेन संगुप्त: शत्रुभिश्षल न धर्षित:
asminn ahaṃ tad-drume jātaḥ sādhubhiś ca guṇair yutaḥ | bāla-bhāvena saṃguptaḥ śatrubhiś ca na dharṣitaḥ ||
Bhīṣma sprach: „Auf eben diesem Baum wurde ich geboren, und hier wuchs ich heran, begabt mit den Tugenden, die die Guten hochschätzen. Wie ein Kind unter dem Schutz eines Hüters war ich geborgen, und meine Feinde vermochten mich weder zu bezwingen noch zu schänden.“
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights gratitude and dharmic reflection: one should recognize and honor the sources of one’s safety and moral formation. Protection and nurturing—here symbolized by a tree—enable the cultivation of virtues, and such shelter can render hostility ineffective.
Bhishma speaks in the first person, recalling being born upon/near a particular tree and being raised there. He credits that place/object with safeguarding him like a child, so that enemies could not successfully attack or harm him.