Shloka 19

Devanagari script

उक्त्वा भीष्मवधायेति प्रविवेश हुताशनम्‌ । ज्येष्ठा काशिसुता राजन्‌ यमुनामभितो नदीम्‌

Transliteration

uktvā bhīṣmavadhāyeti praviveśa hutāśanam | jyeṣṭhā kāśisutā rājan yamunām abhito nadīm ||

Translation

Having declared, “This is for the slaying of Bhīṣma,” the eldest princess of Kāśī, O King, entered the sacrificial fire on the bank of the river Yamunā.

Word by Word

उक्त्वाhaving said

भीष्म-वधायfor the slaying of Bhīṣma

इतिthus

प्रविवेशentered

हुताशनम्the fire

ज्येष्ठाthe eldest

काशि-सुताthe daughter of Kāśī

राजन्O king

यमुनाम्the Yamunā (river)

अभितःaround, on both sides of

नदीम्the river

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

Bhīṣma

Kāśī (Kāśi)

eldest princess of Kāśī

Hutāśana (fire)

Yamunā river

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Cross References

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights the perilous power of a fixed vow: when duty is interpreted through the lens of revenge, it can eclipse compassion and self-preservation. It invites reflection on whether an end (retribution) can justify self-destructive means, and how personal agency operates within social codes and perceived destiny.

What is happening in the narrative?

Bhīṣma recounts that the eldest princess of Kāśī, proclaiming her intent connected to Bhīṣma’s death, entered the fire by the Yamunā. This points to her intense resolve and sets the background for later consequences tied to Bhīṣma’s eventual fall.