Shloka 14

Devanagari script

अक्षमाया: क्षमायाश्ष प्रियाणीहाप्रियाणि च । क्षमते सम्मतः साधु: साध्वाप्रोति च सत्यवाक्‌,जो सहने और न सहनेयोग्य व्यवहारों तथा प्रिय एवं अप्रिय वचनोंको भी समानरूपसे सहन कर लेता है, वही सर्वसम्मत क्षमाशील श्रेष्ठ पुरुष है। सत्यवादी पुरुषको ही उत्तम रीतिसे क्षमाभावकी प्राप्ति होती है

Transliteration

akṣamāyāḥ kṣamāyāś ca priyāṇīhāpriyāṇi ca | kṣamate sammataḥ sādhuḥ sādhv āpnoti ca satyavāk ||

Translation

Bhishma said: The truly good person, approved by all, is the one who endures alike what is bearable and what is hard to bear, and who bears in the same spirit words that are pleasant and words that are unpleasant. Such excellence in forgiveness is properly attained by one who is devoted to truth in speech.

Word by Word

• {'akṣamā': 'intolerance

• impatience', 'kṣamā': 'forbearance

• patient endurance', 'priyāṇi': 'pleasant things

• agreeable words/acts', 'apriyāṇi': 'unpleasant things

• disagreeable words/acts', 'iha': 'here (in this world/this context)', 'ca': 'and', 'kṣamate': 'endures

• bears patiently', 'sammataḥ': 'approved

• esteemed (by all)', 'sādhuḥ': 'good person

• virtuous one', 'sādhv': 'properly

• well', 'āpnoti': 'attains

• obtains', 'satyavāk': 'truth-speaker

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Bhishma

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

True virtue is shown by equal endurance of pleasant and unpleasant treatment; forgiveness (kṣamā) becomes stable and exemplary when grounded in truthfulness (satya) and disciplined speech.

What is happening in the narrative?

In the Shanti Parva’s instruction on dharma, Bhishma continues advising on moral conduct, defining the universally respected ‘sādhu’ as one who practices forbearance toward both agreeable and disagreeable words and behaviors, and linking this capacity to being a truthful speaker.