Shloka 32
बक-गौतमाख्यानम् / The Baka–Gautama Account
On Gratitude and Friendship Ethics
तदा हिमवत: शड्रे सुरम्ये पद्मतारके । शतयोजनविस्तारे मणिरत्नचयाचिते
tadā himavataḥ śṛṅge suramye padmatārake | śatayojanavistāre maṇiratnacayācite ||
Bhīṣma said: “Then, upon a beautiful peak of the Himavat, so lofty that the stars in the sky seemed like lotuses in bloom upon it, there stood a summit spreading a hundred yojanas, studded and heaped with gems and precious stones. In that setting, Brahmā—accompanied by the brahmarṣis—arrived, marking a solemn, cosmic intervention amid the pride and aloofness of the powerful.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames a moral contrast: worldly pride and refusal to engage respectfully are set against the higher, stabilizing presence of Brahmā and the brahmarṣis. The imagery suggests that dharma is upheld not by arrogance but by alignment with cosmic order and reverence for wise counsel.
Bhishma describes a majestic Himalayan summit—vast, star-lotus-like, and gem-studded—where Brahmā arrives together with the brahmarṣis. The scene prepares for a significant divine or sage-led intervention in the unfolding account.