Shloka 10
Tapas as the Root of Attainment (तपः—साधनमूलप्रशंसा)
अहो नु रमणीयस्त्वमहो चासि मनोहर: । प्रीयामहे त्वया नित्यं तरुप्रवर शाल्मले,अहो! शाल्मले! तुम बड़े रमणीय और मनोहर हो। तरुप्रवर! तुमसे हमें सदा प्रसन्नता प्राप्त होती है
aho nu ramaṇīyas tvam aho cāsi manoharaḥ | prīyāmahe tvayā nityaṃ tarupravara śālmale ||
Bhishma said: “Ah! How delightful you are—how truly charming. O foremost of trees, O śālmali, through you we are continually gladdened.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how the mind readily praises and clings to what appears pleasant. In ethical reflection, it can be read as a prompt to examine whether one’s delight is grounded in discernment (viveka) or merely in the pleasure an object provides.
Bhīṣma addresses a śālmali tree directly, admiring its beauty and saying it continually gives delight. The speech functions as a vivid, personifying address to a natural object, used to illustrate a point about attraction, appreciation, or the psychology of attachment within the broader Śānti-parvan discourse.