Shloka 3

Devanagari script

अगाधे विमले शुद्धे सत्यतोये धृतिहदे । स्नातव्यं मानसे तीर्थे सत्त्वमालम्ब्य शाश्वतम्‌,जिसमें धैर्यरूप कुण्ड और सत्यरूप जल भरा हुआ है तथा जो अगाध, निर्मल एवं अत्यन्त शुद्ध है, उस मानस तीर्थमें सदा परमात्माका आश्रय लेकर स्नान करना चाहिये

Transliteration

bhīṣma uvāca | agādhe vimale śuddhe satyatoye dhṛtihade | snātavyaṃ mānase tīrthe sattvam ālambya śāśvatam ||

Translation

Di tīrtha batin itu—tak terukur, tanpa noda, dan sepenuhnya suci—yang telaganya adalah keteguhan dan airnya adalah kebenaran, hendaknya seseorang senantiasa ‘mandi’, bersandar pada Sang Diri Tertinggi yang Kekal.

Word by Word

अगाधेin the unfathomable (one)

विमलेin the spotless (one)

शुद्धेin the pure (one)

सत्य-तोयेin (that) whose water is truth / in truth-water

धृति-हदेin (that) whose lake/pond is steadfastness

स्नातव्यम्should be bathed (one should bathe)

मानसेin the mental / of the mind

तीर्थेin the sacred ford/place of pilgrimage

सत्त्वम्being; goodness; true essence

आलम्ब्यhaving relied on / taking refuge in

शाश्वतम्the eternal (one)

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

Bhishma

mānasa tīrtha (mental sacred ford)

satya (truth)

dhṛti (steadfastness/fortitude)

śāśvata (the Eternal Supreme Self)

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?

True purification is primarily inward: one should 'bathe' in a mental tīrtha made of truth (satya) and steadfastness (dhṛti), continually relying on the Eternal Self. Ethical integrity and inner firmness are presented as the real sacred waters.

What is happening in the narrative?

In Anuśāsana Parva, Bhishma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on dharma. Here he uses a metaphor of pilgrimage: instead of emphasizing external bathing alone, he praises an inner sacred place—purity of mind grounded in truth and fortitude.