Shloka 17
ब्राह्मणस्य पूर्वतरा वृत्तिः — The Earlier Ideal Conduct of a Brahmana
River-of-Saṃsāra Metaphor
ईश्वरो हि पुरा भूत्वा पितृपैतामहे पदे । तत्त्वमद्य हृतं दृष्टयवा सपत्नै: कि न शोचसि,“पहले तो तुम अपने बाप-दादोंके राज्यपर बैठकर तीनों लोकोंके ईश्वर बने हुए थे। अब उस राज्यको शत्रुओंने छीन लिया; यह देखकर भी तुम्हें शोक क्यों नहीं होता है?
īśvaro hi purā bhūtvā pitṛpaitāmahe pade | tattvam adya hṛtaṃ dṛṣṭvā sapatnaiḥ kiṃ na śocasi ||
Bhīṣma said: “Formerly, seated upon the ancestral throne of your fathers and grandfathers, you stood as a sovereign—lordly in power as though master of the three worlds. Now that very dominion has been seized by your rivals. Seeing this, why do you not grieve?”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse probes the psychology of kingship and attachment: when a person who once held inherited sovereignty loses it to rivals, grief is a natural response. By questioning the absence (or presence) of grief, Bhīṣma sets up reflection on what truly deserves sorrow—external power and possessions, or the inner standards of dharma and self-mastery.
Bhīṣma addresses a royal figure, reminding him of his former status on the ancestral throne and pointing out that the kingdom has now been taken by rivals. He challenges the listener’s emotional reaction—asking why, despite such a visible reversal of fortune, he does not grieve—thereby advancing a discussion on loss, duty, and the proper orientation of the mind.