Shloka 58
Adhyāya 55: Pārtha–Rādheya Saṃvāda and Tactical Exchange
Chapter 55
एष शान्तनवो भीष्म: सर्वेषां न: पितामह: । राजश्रियाभिवृद्धश्न सुयोधनवशानुग:
arjuna uvāca | eṣa śāntanavo bhīṣmaḥ sarveṣāṃ naḥ pitāmahaḥ | rājaśriyābhivṛddho 'pi suyodhana-vaśānugaḥ |
アルジュナは言った。「あれこそシャーンタヌの子ビーシュマ、我らすべての大祖父である。王者の栄華により高められ富みながらも、なおスヨーダナの支配に従っている。忠誠と境遇ゆえに不義の側へ縛られた、かくも尊い長老を目にすることは、悲嘆と道義の苦しみで我が心を焼く。」
अजुन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical pain caused when a revered elder, despite personal greatness and honor, becomes bound to an unworthy ruler’s will. It points to the tension between loyalty/obligation and righteousness (dharma), and how such subjection can distress the conscience of the virtuous.
Arjuna identifies Bhīṣma on the opposing side and laments that the grandsire—prosperous and eminent—has nevertheless become compliant to Suyodhana (Duryodhana). This recognition intensifies Arjuna’s sorrow and moral turmoil as the conflict approaches.