Shloka 53
एतत् तु वचन श्रुत्वा भगोस्तथ्यं प्रतर्दन:
etat tu vacanaṃ śrutvā bhagoḥ tathyaṃ pratardanaḥ | maharṣiṃ bhṛguṃ caiva yathārtha-vacanaṃ śrutvā pratardano bahu prasannaḥ san śanaiḥ śanaiḥ tayor ubhayor caraṇau spṛṣṭvā uvāca— “bhagavan! yadi evaṃ, tarhi ahaṃ kṛtakṛtyo ’smi; atra saṃśayo nāsti.”
ये सत्य वचन सुनकर प्रतर्दन अत्यन्त प्रसन्न हुआ। उसने श्रद्धापूर्वक धीरे-धीरे महर्षि के चरण स्पर्श किए और बोला— “भगवन्! यदि यह बात ऐसी ही है, तो मैं कृतकृत्य हो गया; इसमें कोई संशय नहीं।”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Truthful instruction (tathya/yathārtha-vacana) has transformative ethical force: when a seeker receives clear, reality-aligned guidance from a worthy authority, it brings inner completion (kṛtakṛtyatā) and removes doubt.
After hearing the sages’ truthful words, Pratardana becomes pleased, approaches with humility, touches their feet as a sign of reverence, and declares that if what he has heard is true, then his aim is fulfilled and he has no remaining doubt.