Shloka 7

Varṇasaṃkara: Causes, Classifications, and Conduct-based Recognition (वर्णसंकरः—हेतु-जाति-आचारनिर्णयः)

Devanagari script

असदाचरिते मार्गे कथं स्यादनुकीर्तनम्‌ । अत्र प्रश्न: संशयो वा सतामेवमुपालभेत्‌,दुराचारियोंके मार्गका शास्त्रोंद्वारा कैसे अनुमोदन किया जा सकता है? इस विषयमें सत्पुरुषोंके समक्ष प्रश्न, संशय अथवा उपालम्भ कैसे उपस्थित किया जा सकता है?

Transliteration

Bhīṣma uvāca: asad-ācarite mārge kathaṃ syād anukīrtanam | atra praśnaḥ saṃśayo vā satām evam upālabhet |

Translation

Bhishma dijo: «¿Cómo podrían las Escrituras aprobar o encomiar un sendero marcado por la mala conducta? Y en asunto tal, ¿cómo presentar ante los justos una pregunta, una duda o incluso un reproche de esta manera?»

Word by Word

असदाचरितेin the path of bad conduct

मार्गेin the path/way

कथम्how?

स्यात्could be / would be

अनुकीर्तनम्approval/commendation (lit. recounting/praise)

अत्रhere/in this matter

प्रश्नःa question

संशयःa doubt

वाor

सताम्of the good/virtuous people

एवम्thus/in this way

उपालभेत्could be raised/urged (as a reproach/objection)

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

Bhīṣma

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Bhishma emphasizes that śāstra (authoritative teaching) cannot be used to legitimize a path grounded in misconduct; ethical tradition (sadācāra) and the judgment of the righteous set limits on what can be defended as dharma.

What is happening in the narrative?

In his instruction on dharma, Bhishma anticipates or answers an objection: if a certain course is plainly rooted in bad conduct, it cannot be presented as scripturally approved, nor should one press the righteous with doubts or reproaches that attempt to normalize such wrongdoing.