Shloka 2
आपद्-राजनीतिः (Āpad-rājanīti) — Policy Options in Multi-Front Crisis
एक: पुत्र: स विप्राग्रय बाल एव च मेडनघ । न दृश्यते वने चारसमिंस्तमन्वेष्ट चराम्यहम्
ekaḥ putraḥ sa viprāgrya bāla eva ca medhānagha | na dṛśyate vane cārasam asmin tam anveṣṭuṃ carāmy aham | niṣpāpa vipravara ||
“O foremost of brāhmaṇas, my only son—still just a child, O sinless one—cannot be seen after coming into this forest. Therefore I am wandering in every direction, searching for him.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the dharmic impulse of responsibility and care: a parent’s duty to protect and seek a dependent child, expressed with humility and respect toward a brāhmaṇa. It frames grief and urgency within ethical conduct rather than anger or blame.
Bhīṣma addresses a revered brāhmaṇa, explaining that his only son, still a child, has gone missing after entering the forest. Bhīṣma is roaming in all directions to find him.