Shloka 32

अध्याय ३३७ — ज्ञानमार्ग-वैविध्यप्रश्नः तथा व्यासस्य नारायणोद्भवकथा

Systems of Knowledge and Vyāsa’s Nārāyaṇa-Origin

Devanagari script

प्राप्य श्वेतं महाद्वीपं तच्चित्तास्तदूदिदृक्षव: । ततोअस्मद्दृष्टिविषयस्तदा प्रतिहतो5भवत्‌

Transliteration

prāpya śvetaṁ mahādvīpaṁ taccittās tad-udidṛkṣavaḥ | tato 'smad-dṛṣṭi-viṣayas tadā pratihato 'bhavat ||

Translation

Bhishma berkata: “Setibanya kami di pulau besar bernama Śveta, batin kami sepenuhnya terpusat pada Tuhan, dan kerinduan untuk memandang-Nya makin menyala. Namun pada saat itu juga jangkauan penglihatan kami terhenti—daya melihat kami terhalang.”

Word by Word

• प्राप्य: having reached
• Type: Verb
• Root: प्र-आप् (धातु)
• Form: ल्यप् (क्त्वान्त/absolutive), कर्तरि

• श्वेतम्: white (named Śveta)
• श्वेतम्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: श्वेत (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• महाद्वीपम्: the great island/continent
• महाद्वीपम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: महाद्वीप (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• तत्: that
• Type: Adjective
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• चित्ताः: minded; with minds (we)
• चित्ताः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: चित्त (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन

• तत्: that (him/that object)
• तत्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया, एकवचन

• उदिदृक्षवः: desirous of seeing
• उदिदृक्षवः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: उद्-ईक्ष् (धातु) → उदिदृक्षु (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन, सन्-प्रत्ययान्त (desiderative) adjectival form

• ततः: then/from there
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ततः (अव्यय)

• अस्मत्-दृष्टि-विषयः: object within our sight; range of our vision
• अस्मत्-दृष्टि-विषयः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: अस्मत् + दृष्टि + विषय (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• तदा: at that time
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तदा (अव्यय)

• प्रतिहतः: obstructed/checked
• Type: Adjective
• Root: प्रति-हन् (धातु) → प्रतिहत (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन, क्त (past passive participle)

• अभवत्: became/was
• Type: Verb
• Root: भू (धातु)
• Form: लङ् (अनद्यतनभूत), प्रथम, एकवचन, कर्तरि

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Bhīṣma
• Śveta Mahādvīpa

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Even intense longing for God and mental absorption (tac-citta) does not guarantee sensory access; divine reality is not fully grasped by ordinary sight. The verse highlights the ethical-spiritual lesson that the senses have limits, and that true encounter with the Divine may require inner qualification beyond mere physical approach.

What is happening in the narrative?

Bhīṣma recounts a journey to Śveta Mahādvīpa with the aim of beholding the Lord. Upon arriving, their minds are fixed on Him and they are eager for दर्शन, but their visual faculty is suddenly blocked—suggesting a sacred boundary or a transcendence that resists ordinary perception.