Shloka 37
बक-गौतमाख्यानम् / The Baka–Gautama Account
On Gratitude and Friendship Ethics
तत्र घोरतमं वृत्तमृषीणां मे परिश्रुतम्,उस समय वहाँ एक अत्यन्त भयंकर घटना घटित हुई, जिसे मैंने ऋषियोंके मुँहसे सुना था। जैसे ताराओंके उगनेपर निर्मल आकाशमें चन्द्रमाका उदय हो, उसी प्रकार उस यज्ञमण्डपमें अग्निको इधर-उधर बिखेरकर एक भयंकर भूत प्रकट हुआ, ऐसा सुना जाता है
tatra ghoratamaṃ vṛttam ṛṣīṇāṃ me pariśrutam | us samaya vahāṃ eka atyanta bhayaṅkara ghaṭanā ghaṭita huī, jise maiṃne ṛṣiyoṃ ke muṃh se sunā thā | jaise tārāoṃ ke ugane par nirmala ākāśa meṃ candramā kā uday ho, usī prakāra us yajñamaṇḍapa meṃ agni ko idhar-udhar bikhērakar eka bhayaṅkara bhūta prakaṭ huā, aisā sunā jātā hai ||
Di sana, aku mendengar dari mulut para resi, telah terjadi peristiwa yang paling mengerikan. Seperti bulan terbit di langit yang jernih ketika gugus bintang telah tampak, demikian pula—dengan menghamburkan api yajña ke segala penjuru di dalam lingkaran ritual—sesosok makhluk gaib yang mengerikan menampakkan diri; demikianlah kisahnya.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames a moral warning through remembered tradition: even sacred settings like a yajña can be disrupted when ominous forces arise, reminding the listener that ritual order and dharmic vigilance are essential, and that elders’ transmitted accounts (pariśruta) carry instructive authority.
Bhishma reports a dreadful episode he learned from sages: in a sacrificial pavilion, a terrifying spirit manifested, scattering the sacrificial fire in different directions—an inauspicious disruption likened, by contrast, to the orderly beauty of the moon rising among stars.