Shloka 12
Ākiṃcanya–Tyāga Upadeśa
The Instruction on Non-ownership and Renunciation
देशे समे सुखे चित्रे स्वर्गोद्दिशसमे नृप । श्रिया जुष्टं महावृक्ष॑ न्यग्रोध॑ च सुमण्डलम्
bhīṣma uvāca | deśe same sukhe citre svargoddiśa-same nṛpa | śriyā juṣṭaṃ mahāvṛkṣaṃ nyagrodhaṃ ca sumaṇḍalam |
Bhishma said: O king, in a level, pleasant, and wondrous region—charming like the precincts of heaven—Gautama beheld a magnificent banyan tree, graced by prosperity and spreading in a perfect circular canopy. With its many beautiful branches it appeared like a vast royal parasol, and its roots were nourished with water scented with sandalwood—an auspicious setting for the instruction that follows, in serenity, purity, and dharmic contemplation.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse prepares a dharmic discourse by placing it in an auspicious, serene environment: a heavenly-like landscape and a banyan resembling a royal parasol. The ethical suggestion is that clarity about dharma is best approached in purity, calmness, and reverence—outer order mirroring inner discipline.
Bhishma describes to the king how the sage Gautama arrives at a delightful, level region and sees a splendid banyan tree with a circular canopy, like a great umbrella, its roots tended with sandalwood-scented water—setting the scene for what follows.