Shloka 22

Devanagari script

तदा तान्‌ दुःखितान्‌ ज्ञात्वा आनृशंस्यपरो मुनि: । अयत्नेनादहत्‌ सर्वान्‌ खलिन: स्वेन तेजसा,“इन्द्रको भी उन दैत्योंसे भिड़कर महान्‌ क्लेश उठाना पड़ा; अतः वे वसिष्ठजीकी शरणमें गये। तब उन भगवान्‌ वसिष्ठ मुनिने, जो बड़े ही दयालु थे, देवताओंको दुखी जानकर उन्हें अभयदान दे दिया और बिना किसी प्रयत्नके ही अपने तेजसे उन समस्त खली नामके दानवोंको दग्ध कर डाला

Transliteration

tadā tān duḥkhitān jñātvā ānṛśaṃsyaparo muniḥ | ayatnenādahat sarvān khalinaḥ svena tejasā ||

Translation

Bhishma said: Then the sage, foremost in compassion, seeing their distress, granted them fearlessness; and without any exertion he burned up all those demons called Khalins by the power of his own spiritual radiance.

Word by Word

तदाthen

तान्those (them)

दुःखितान्distressed, afflicted

ज्ञात्वाhaving known/understood

आनृशंस्यपरःdevoted to compassion (kindly-disposed)

मुनिःsage

अयत्नेनwithout effort; effortlessly

अदहत्burned, scorched

सर्वान्all

खलिनःthe Khalins (named beings/demons)

स्वेनby his own

तेजसाsplendor, fiery power

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

Bhishma

Vasiṣṭha (implied by context as the compassionate sage)

Khalins (demons/daityas)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Cross References

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Compassion (ānṛśaṃsya) is not weakness: a righteous sage protects the distressed by granting fearlessness and neutralizes cruelty through spiritual power, showing that dharma can be upheld decisively without vindictiveness.

What is happening in the narrative?

Seeing certain beings in distress, the compassionate sage grants them safety and, without any effort, destroys the demons called Khalins by his own tejas (ascetic radiance).