Shloka 16
Cyavana Explains His Tests; Kuśika Seeks Brāhmaṇya for His Line (च्यवन–कुशिक संवादः)
सत्कृत्य तं तथा विप्रमिदं पुनरथाब्रवीत् । भगवन् परवन्न्तौ स्वो ब्रूहि किं करवावहे
satkṛtya taṃ tathā vipram idaṃ punar athābravīt | bhagavan paravantau svaḥ brūhi kiṃ karavāvahe ||
Nachdem sie jenen Brahmanen-Weisen gebührend geehrt hatten, sprachen sie erneut zu ihm: „Ehrwürdiger Herr, wir beide—Mann und Frau—stehen unter deiner Leitung. Sage uns: welchen Dienst sollen wir dir erweisen?“
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches the dharmic ideal of honoring a worthy guest—especially a learned and virtuous brahmin—and then offering oneself in service with humility, seeking guidance rather than asserting one’s own will.
After respectfully receiving and honoring a brahmin-sage, a married couple addresses him again, declaring their readiness to follow his direction and asking what they should do to serve him.