Shloka 18
उपवासविधि-प्रश्नः
Inquiry into the Discipline of Fasting
Devanagari script
शरीरमेतौ सृजत: पिता माता च भारत
Transliteration
śarīram etau sṛjataḥ pitā mātā ca bhārata
Translation
ビーシュマは言った。「おおバーラタよ、身体をこの世に生じさせるのは、この二人――父と母――である。」
Word by Word
शरीरम्body
शरीरम्:
Karma
TypeNoun
Rootशरीर
FormNeuter, Accusative, Singular
एतौthese two
एतौ:
Karta
TypePronoun
Rootएतद्
FormMasculine, Nominative, Dual
सृजतःcreate / generate
सृजतः:
TypeVerb
Rootसृज्
FormPresent, Third, Dual, Parasmaipada
पिताfather
पिता:
Karta
TypeNoun
Rootपितृ
FormMasculine, Nominative, Singular
माताmother
माता:
Karta
TypeNoun
Rootमातृ
FormFeminine, Nominative, Singular
चand
च:
TypeIndeclinable
Rootच
भारतO Bharata
भारत:
TypeNoun
Rootभारत
FormMasculine, Vocative, Singular
Speaker
भीष्म उवाच
Characters & Entities
B
BhīṣmaB
Bhārata (Yudhiṣṭhira)P
pitā (father)M
mātā (mother)Ś
śarīra (body)Character Dynamics
Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)
Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)
Philosophical Teaching
Political Layer
Meter (Chandas)
Sandhi Notes
Educational Q&A
Bhīṣma grounds ethical duty in the fact of embodied existence: since one’s body arises through father and mother, reverence, gratitude, and service toward parents are presented as a primary obligation within dharma.
In Anuśāsana Parva’s instruction on righteous conduct, Bhīṣma addresses Yudhiṣṭhira and states a foundational point about human birth—parents are the immediate causes of the body—supporting subsequent guidance on honoring and serving them.