Shloka 1
ऑपनआक्रात बछ। अड्--क्ाज पज्चषष्टर्याधेकशततमो& ध्याय: नित्यस्मरणीय देवता
Vaiśampāyana uvāca—śarat-talpa-gataṃ Bhīṣmaṃ Pāṇḍavo ’tha Kurūdvahaḥ | Yudhiṣṭhiro hitaṃ prepsur apṛcchat kalmaṣāpaham ||
വൈശമ്പായനൻ പറഞ്ഞു—അതിനുശേഷം കുരുശ്രേഷ്ഠനായ പാണ്ഡവൻ യുധിഷ്ഠിരൻ, തന്റെ ഹിതം ആഗ്രഹിച്ചു, ശരശയ്യയിൽ കിടന്ന ഭീഷ്മനോടു പാപനാശകമായ വിഷയത്തെക്കുറിച്ച് ചോദിച്ചു.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames dharma-inquiry as a deliberate pursuit of true welfare (hita) and moral purification (kalmaṣāpaha). It signals that ethical clarity and removal of inner taint are sought through respectful questioning of a realized elder, especially after the devastations of war.
After the war, Bhīṣma lies on the bed of arrows. Yudhiṣṭhira, as the leading Kuru and newly responsible ruler, approaches him and asks a question aimed at dispelling sin/impurity—introducing the ensuing instruction of Anuśāsana Parva.