Shloka 42

Devanagari script

अभ्यभाषत दाशार्हों भीष्म शान्तनवं शनै: । पार्थिवीं समितिं द्रष्टमूषयो$भ्यागता नूप,राजाओंके बीचमें खड़े हुए शत्रुनगरविजयी परंतप श्रीकृष्णने देखा कि आकाशमें कुछ ऋषि-मुनि खड़े हैं। उन नारद आदि महर्षियोंको देखकर श्रीकृष्णने धीरेसे शान्तनुनन्दन भीष्मसे कहा-- “नरेश्वर! इस राजसभाको देखनेके लिये ऋषिगण पधारे हैं

Transliteration

vaiśampāyana uvāca | abhyabhāṣata dāśārho bhīṣma śāntanavaṃ śanaiḥ | pārthivīṃ samitiṃ draṣṭum ṛṣayo 'bhyāgatā nṛpa ||

Translation

Vaiśampāyana said: Dāśārha Śrī Kṛṣṇa softly addressed Bhīṣma, the son of Śāntanu: “O king, sages have arrived to behold this assembly of kings.” Seeing the great seers present in the sky, Kṛṣṇa signals that even political deliberations and the looming war are being witnessed under a higher moral and spiritual scrutiny.

Word by Word

• [{'term': 'abhyabhāṣata', 'definition': 'spoke to, addressed (aorist of abhi-√bhāṣ)'}, {'term': 'dāśārhaḥ', 'definition': 'Kṛṣṇa, descendant of the Daśārha/Yādava line'}, {'term': 'bhīṣmaḥ', 'definition': 'Bhīṣma, the grandsire of the Kurus'}, {'term': 'śāntanavam', 'definition': 'son of Śāntanu

• epithet of Bhīṣma'}, {'term': 'śanaiḥ', 'definition': 'gently, slowly, in a low voice'}, {'term': 'pārthivīm samitim', 'definition': 'the royal assembly of kings (lit. ‘earthly’ assembly)'}, {'term': 'draṣṭum', 'definition': 'to see, to behold (infinitive of √dṛś)'}, {'term': 'ṛṣayaḥ', 'definition': 'sages, seers'}, {'term': 'abhyāgatāḥ', 'definition': 'have come near, have arrived'}, {'term': 'nṛpa', 'definition': 'O king (vocative)'}]

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vaiśampāyana
• Śrī Kṛṣṇa (Dāśārha)
• Bhīṣma (Śāntanu-nandana/Śāntanava)
• Ṛṣis (sages; implied Nārada and others in the prose context)
• Royal assembly (pārthivī samiti)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Even royal policy and the approach to war are not merely human affairs; they are subject to dharmic evaluation. The arrival of sages symbolizes a higher moral witness, urging restraint, clarity, and responsibility in counsel and decision-making.

What is happening in the narrative?

In the royal court setting, Kṛṣṇa notices sages present (described as in the sky in the accompanying prose) and quietly informs Bhīṣma that they have come to observe the gathering of kings.