Shloka 17

उपदेशदोषप्रसङ्गः (Upadeśa-doṣa-prasaṅgaḥ) — The Risk of Misapplied Counsel

Devanagari script

शुश्रूषया परॉल्लोकानवाप्स्यसि न संशय:

Transliteration

śuśrūṣayā parāṁl lokān avāpsyasi na saṁśayaḥ

Translation

Bhīṣma said: By devoted service you will attain the higher worlds—of this there is no doubt. The head of the āśrama said: “In this hermitage no Śūdra may dwell bearing the outward marks of saṃnyāsa. If you would stay here, then stay as you are and serve the sādhus and the mahātmās. By service alone you shall win the excellent worlds—of this there is no doubt.”

Word by Word

• शुश्रूषया: by service/attendance
• शुश्रूषया: Karana
• Type: Noun
• Root: शुश्रूषा
• Form: Feminine, Instrumental, Singular

• परान्: higher/supreme
• परान्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पर
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Plural

• लोकान्: worlds/realms
• लोकान्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: लोक
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Plural

• अवाप्स्यसि: you will obtain
• अवाप्स्यसि: Karta
• Type: Verb
• Root: अवाप्
• Form: Simple Future (Luṭ), 2nd, Singular

• न: not
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न

• संशयः: doubt
• संशयः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: संशय
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Bhīṣma

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Devoted service (śuśrūṣā)—especially to sādhus and disciplined elders—is presented as a direct means to spiritual merit and higher attainment; inner conduct and service can outweigh mere external renunciant signs.

What is happening in the narrative?

Bhīṣma, in his instruction on dharma, assures the listener that by remaining in an āśrama setting and serving the virtuous with sincerity, one will gain exalted results; the surrounding context (as reflected in the Gītā Press Hindi note) contrasts eligibility for renunciant marks with the universally accessible path of service.