Shloka 18

Devanagari script

अन्तःक्रूरा वाड्मधुरा: कूपाश्छन्नास्तृणैरिव । धर्मवैतंसिका: क्षुद्रा मुष्णन्ति ध्वजिनो जगत्‌,वे दोष और क्रोधमें फँसकर शिष्टाचारको छोड़ देते हैं और ऊपरसे मीठे वचन बोलते हुए भी भीतरसे अत्यन्त कठोर हो जाते हैं। उनकी स्थिति घास-फूँससे ढके हुए कुएँके समान होती है। वे धर्मके नामपर संसारको धोखा देनेवाले क्षुद्र मनुष्य धर्मध्वजी होकर (धर्मका ढोंग फैलाकर) जगतको लूटते हैं

Transliteration

antaḥkrūrā vāṅmadhurāḥ kūpāś channās tṛṇair iva | dharmavaitāṃsikāḥ kṣudrā muṣṇanti dhvajino jagat ||

Translation

Bhīṣma sprach: „Manche sind innerlich grausam und doch süß in der Rede. Sie sind wie Brunnen, die von Gras verdeckt sind. Niedrige Menschen, die mit dem Namen des Dharma Handel treiben—das Banner der Rechtschaffenheit tragend—täuschen die Welt und plündern sie.“

Word by Word

अन्तःक्रूराःcruel within

वाक्speech

मधुराःsweet (in speech)

कूपाःwells

छन्नाःcovered

तृणैःwith grass

इवlike/as if

धर्मवैतंसिकाःthose who make a show/ornament of dharma (hypocrites)

क्षुद्राःpetty, mean

मुष्णन्तिsteal/rob

ध्वजिनःbanner-bearers; those bearing a (religious) flag/mark

जगत्the world

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

Bhīṣma

kūpa (well)

tṛṇa (grass/straw)

dhvaja (banner/flag of dharma)

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?

Outer piety and pleasant speech can mask inner cruelty; those who brandish ‘dharma’ as a public banner while lacking integrity become dangerous to society, exploiting trust and robbing others under a moral pretext.

What is happening in the narrative?

In Śānti Parva, Bhīṣma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on righteous conduct and governance. Here he warns against dharma-pretenders—people who appear virtuous but are inwardly harmful—using the image of a grass-covered well to show concealed danger.