Shloka 6

संधेयासंधेय-पुरुषनिर्णयः (Criteria for Allies and Non-Allies) — with the opening of the Gautama narrative

Devanagari script

सुरापो5सम्मतादायी भ्रूणहा गुरुतल्पग: । तपसैव सुतप्तेन नर: पापात्‌ प्रमुच्यते,शराबी, किसीकी सम्मतिके बिना ही उसकी वस्तु उठा लेनेवाला (चोर), गर्भहत्यारा और गुरुपत्नीगामी मनुष्य भी अच्छी तरह की हुई तपस्याद्वारा ही पापसे छुटकारा पाता है

Transliteration

bhīṣma uvāca | surāpo 'sammatādāyī bhrūṇahā gurutalpagaḥ | tapasaiva sutaptena naraḥ pāpāt pramucyate ||

Translation

Bhīṣma berkata: Seorang peminum minuman memabukkan, perampas milik orang lain tanpa izin, pembunuh janin, dan pelanggar ranjang guru—bahkan orang seperti itu pun, bila sungguh-sungguh menjalani tapa yang berat, dapat terbebas dari dosa melalui tapa itu saja.

Word by Word

सुरापःa drunkard

असम्मतादायीone who takes (what is) not consented to; thief

भ्रूणहाslayer of an embryo; foeticide

गुरुतल्पगःone who goes to the गुरु's bed; violator of the teacher's wife

तपसाby austerity

एवindeed; only

सुतप्तेनwell-performed; well-heated (i.e., well-practised)

नरःa man

पापात्from sin

प्रमुच्यतेis released; is freed

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

Bhīṣma

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Even the gravest moral transgressions are said to be removable through genuinely intense tapas (austerity/penance). The emphasis is on inner discipline and sustained self-purification as the effective means of expiation.

What is happening in the narrative?

In the Śānti Parva’s instruction on dharma and moral repair, Bhishma teaches Yudhiṣṭhira about prāyaścitta: he lists severe sins and states that a person becomes freed from their taint through well-performed austerity.