Shloka 18
Bhīṣma’s Hymn to Viṣṇu and Kṛṣṇa’s Criteria for Divine Self-Disclosure
तज्ज्ञातिशोकोपहतश्रुताय सत्याभिसंधाय युधिष्ठिराय । प्रब्रूहि धर्मार्थसमाधियुक्तं सत्यं वचो5स्यापनुदाशु शोकम्,ये सत्यपरायण युधिष्छिर बन्धुजनोंके शोकसे अपना सारा शास्त्रज्ञान खो बैठे हैं; अतः आप इन्हें धर्म, अर्थ और योगसे युक्त यथार्थ बातें सुनाकर शीघ्र ही इनका शोक दूर कीजिये
vāyudeva uvāca |
taj-jñāti-śokopahata-śrutāya satyābhisaṃdhāya yudhiṣṭhirāya |
prabrūhi dharmārtha-samādhi-yuktaṃ satyaṃ vaco ’syāpanudāśu śokam ||
Vāyu said: “To Yudhiṣṭhira—steadfast in his vow to truth—speak words that are true, endowed with dharma, artha, and contemplative steadiness; for his learning has been overwhelmed by grief for his kinsmen. By that truth, swiftly dispel his sorrow.”
वायुदेव उवाच
Educational Q&A
Truthful counsel should be delivered in a way that integrates dharma (moral duty), artha (practical welfare), and samādhi (inner composure). Such integrated truth is presented as a remedy for grief that overwhelms even learned understanding.
Vāyu addresses the situation of Yudhiṣṭhira, whose scriptural learning is said to be eclipsed by sorrow for his relatives. He urges that Yudhiṣṭhira be instructed with truthful, well-balanced guidance so that his grief may be quickly removed.