Shloka 5

अम्बा–राम–भीष्म संवादः

Amba–Rama–Bhishma Dialogue on Vow and Refuge

Devanagari script

'भाविनि! मैं किसी तरह ब्राह्मणोंकी आज्ञाके बिना हथियार नहीं उठाऊँगा, ऐसी मैंने प्रतिज्ञा कर रखी है' ।। अम्बोवाच मम दु:खं भगवता व्यपनेयं यतस्तत: । तच्च भीष्मप्रसूतं मे तं जही श्वर मा चिरम्‌,अम्बा बोली--भगवन्‌! आप जैसे हो सके वैसे ही मेरा दुःख दूर करें। वह दुःख भीष्मने पैदा किया है; अतः प्रभो! उसीका शीघ्र वध कीजिये

Transliteration

bhīṣma uvāca— bhāvini! ahaṃ kathaṃcid brāhmaṇānām ājñāṃ vinā śastrāṇi na gṛhṇīyām iti me pratijñā kṛtā. ambovāca— mama duḥkhaṃ bhagavatā vyapaneyaṃ yatas tataḥ; tac ca bhīṣma-prasūtaṃ me, taṃ jahi īśvara mā ciram.

Translation

ભીષ્મ બોલ્યા—હે ભાવિની! બ્રાહ્મણોની આજ્ઞા વિના હું કોઈપણ રીતે શસ્ત્ર નહીં ઉઠાવું; આ મારી પ્રતિજ્ઞા છે. અંબા બોલી—ભગવન્! જેમ બને તેમ મારું દુઃખ દૂર કરો. આ દુઃખ ભીષ્મે જ ઉત્પન્ન કર્યું છે; તેથી પ્રભો, વિલંબ કર્યા વિના તેને વધ કરો.

Word by Word

• {'bhāvini': 'O virtuous/noble woman (vocative address)', 'brāhmaṇānām ājñā': 'the command/authorization of Brahmins', 'vinā': 'without', 'śastrāṇi': 'weapons, arms', 'na gṛhṇīyām': 'I would not take up (weapons)', 'pratijñā': 'vow, solemn pledge', 'mama duḥkham': 'my sorrow/suffering', 'bhagavatā': 'by the Blessed Lord / venerable one (instrumental)', 'vyapaneyam': 'to be removed, to be dispelled', 'yatas tataḥ': 'by whatever means, in whatever way possible', 'bhīṣma-prasūtam': 'produced/caused by Bhishma', 'taṃ jahi': 'slay him', 'īśvara': 'O Lord, master (vocative)', 'mā ciram': 'do not delay

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Bhishma (Bhīṣma)
• Amba (Ambā)
• Brahmins (Brāhmaṇāḥ)
• Weapons (Śastrāṇi)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The passage highlights the binding force of a vow (pratijñā) and the ethical tension it creates: Bhishma subordinates his martial action to Brahmin authorization, while Amba frames her personal injustice as demanding swift redress. It juxtaposes duty-bound restraint with the demand for retributive justice.

What is happening in the narrative?

Bhishma declares that, due to a prior vow, he will not take up weapons without Brahmin command. Amba, suffering because of Bhishma’s earlier actions, appeals to a powerful figure addressed as ‘Bhagavan/Īśvara’ to remove her pain by killing Bhishma quickly.