Shloka 17
Adhyāya 9: Pratiśruta-Dāna
The Duty to Fulfill Promised Gifts
श्रुतश्चापि मया भूय: कृष्णस्यापि विशाम्पते | कथां कथयत: पूर्व ब्राह्मणं प्रति पाण्डव
śrutaś cāpi mayā bhūyaḥ kṛṣṇasyāpi viśāmpate | kathāṃ kathayataḥ pūrvaṃ brāhmaṇaṃ prati pāṇḍava prajānātha pāṇḍunandana ||
Bhīṣma dit : « Ô seigneur des peuples, ô Pāṇḍava, ô fils de Pāṇḍu, cette même chose, je l’ai encore entendue de Kṛṣṇa lui-même, lorsqu’autrefois il racontait à un brahmane un récit semblable. Ainsi, ce que je rapporte n’est pas un simple ouï-dire, mais un enseignement confirmé par une parole faisant autorité. »
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhīṣma emphasizes the reliability of dharma-instruction by grounding it in authoritative transmission: he has heard the same teaching directly from Kṛṣṇa, who earlier taught it to a brāhmaṇa. The verse highlights that ethical guidance is strengthened when confirmed by respected sources and repeated in proper contexts.
Bhīṣma, instructing Yudhiṣṭhira in the Anuśāsana Parva, introduces or reinforces a teaching by stating that he previously heard this very discourse from Kṛṣṇa while Kṛṣṇa was narrating a similar story to a brāhmaṇa. It functions as a credentialing preface to the instruction that follows.