Shloka 13

Bhīṣma on the Śara-Śayyā: Yudhiṣṭhira and Kṛṣṇa Approach the Eldest for Śānti

Devanagari script

कच्चिज्ज्ञानानि सर्वाणि प्रसन्नानि यथा पुरा । कच्चिन्न व्याकुला चैव बुद्धिस्ते वदतां वर

Transliteration

kaccij jñānāni sarvāṇi prasannāni yathā purā | kaccin na vyākulā caiva buddhis te vadatāṃ vara ||

Translation

Vaiśampāyana said: “O best of speakers, are all your faculties of understanding as clear and composed as before? Has your intellect not become disturbed?” In the ethical setting of the Śānti teachings, this question safeguards the reliability of instruction: true counsel on dharma must arise from a steady mind and unimpaired discernment.

Word by Word

• कच्चित्: whether (indeed)?
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: कच्चित्

• ज्ञानानि: sense-faculties/knowledges
• ज्ञानानि: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: ज्ञान
• Form: Neuter, Nominative, Plural

• सर्वाणि: all
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सर्व
• Form: Neuter, Nominative, Plural

• प्रसन्नानि: clear/cheerful/undisturbed
• Type: Adjective
• Root: प्रसन्न
• Form: Neuter, Nominative, Plural

• यथा: as, just as
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यथा

• पुरा: formerly, before
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: पुरा

• कच्चित्: whether (indeed)?
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: कच्चित्

• न: not
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न

• व्याकुला: agitated, disturbed
• Type: Adjective
• Root: व्याकुल
• Form: Feminine, Nominative, Singular

• च: and
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च

• एव: indeed, just
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एव

• बुद्धिः: intellect, mind
• बुद्धिः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: बुद्धि
• Form: Feminine, Nominative, Singular

• ते: your
• ते: Sambandha
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: युष्मद्
• Form: Genitive, Singular

• वदताम्: of those who speak
• वदताम्: Sambandha
• Type: Verb
• Root: वद्
• Form: Masculine/Neuter, Genitive, Plural, Shatr (present active participle)

• वर: O best/excellent one
• Type: Noun
• Root: वर
• Form: Masculine, Vocative, Singular

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vaiśampāyana
• Bhīṣma

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Before receiving or delivering dharma-instruction, one should confirm clarity of mind and steadiness of intellect; ethical guidance is trustworthy only when the teacher’s faculties are serene and undisturbed.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vaiśampāyana, narrating the scene, addresses Bhīṣma respectfully and asks whether his faculties and intellect remain clear and calm, ensuring Bhīṣma is fit to continue speaking on dharma in the Śānti Parva discourse.