Shloka 15

कपोत-लुब्धकसंवादः — Hunter’s Remorse and Renunciatory Resolve

Devanagari script

निन्दया परविद्यानां स्वविद्यां ख्यापयन्ति च । वागस्त्रा वाकूछरी भूता द्रुग्धविद्याफला इव

Transliteration

nindayā paravidyānāṃ svavidyāṃ khyāpayanti ca | vāg-astrā vāk-ūśarī bhūtā drugdha-vidyā-phalā iva ||

Translation

Bhishma dit : Certains font valoir leur propre science en rabaissant celle d’autrui. La parole pour arme, des mots qui frappent comme des flèches, ils semblent comme si le fruit du savoir en eux s’était aigri — se rebellant contre la compréhension véritable. Ainsi, en condamnant l’étude des autres, ils proclament mensongèrement l’excellence de la leur.

Word by Word

• {'nindayā': 'by censure, through blame', 'para-vidyānām': 'of others’ learning/knowledge-systems', 'sva-vidyām': 'one’s own learning', 'khyāpayanti': 'they make known, publicize, advertise', 'ca': 'and', 'vāk': 'speech, word', 'astrā': 'as weapons (astra = weapon)', 'vāg-astrā': 'those whose weapon is speech', 'ūśarī': 'barren, unproductive, harsh/dry (lit. like wasteland)', 'bhūtā': 'having become, being', 'iva': 'as if, like', 'vidyā-phala': 'the fruit/result of learning', 'drugdha': 'spoiled, soured, corrupted (as milk turned bad)'}

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Bhishma

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Learning is validated by humility and discernment, not by attacking others. Using speech as a weapon to belittle other traditions or teachers indicates a corrupted ‘fruit of knowledge’—knowledge without wisdom and ethical restraint.

What is happening in the narrative?

In Bhishma’s instruction in the Shanti Parva, he critiques a type of pseudo-scholar: one who promotes himself by denigrating others. The verse frames such rhetoric as verbal violence—words functioning like weapons—and as a sign that genuine understanding has not matured.