Shloka 34
भीष्मकृतः पाण्डवपक्ष-महारथ-प्रशंसा
Bhishma’s appraisal of Pandava-aligned chariot-warriors
काम नैतत् प्रशंसन्ति सन्त: स्वबलसंस्तवम् । वक्ष्यामि तु त्वां संतप्तो निहीनकुलपांसन,नीचकुलांगार! साधु पुरुष अपने बलकी प्रशंसा करना कदापि अच्छा नहीं मानते हैं, तथापि तेरे व्यवहारसे संतप्त होकर मैं अपनी प्रशंसाकी बात भी कह रहा हूँ
kāma naitat praśaṃsanti santaḥ svabalasaṃstavam | vakṣyāmi tu tvāṃ saṃtapto nihīnakulapāṃsana nīcakula-aṅgāra ||
Bhīṣma said: “The good do not approve of this—self-praise of one’s own strength. Yet, provoked and pained by your conduct, I will speak to you even in that manner. O dust of a fallen lineage, O ember of a base clan!”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse censures self-praise and boasting about one’s strength as unbecoming of the virtuous; ethical speech values restraint and dignity, even in conflict.
Bhīṣma rebukes an opponent who has been boasting; though he notes that good people do not endorse self-glorification, he declares he will respond sharply because he is angered by the other’s behavior.