Shloka 21
व्याप्रान्नागो मदपटुर्नाग: सिंहत्वमागतः । सिंहस्त्वं बलमापन्नो भूय: शरभतां गत:,“अरे! तू पहले कुत्ता था, फिर चीता बना, चीतेसे बाघकी योनिमें आया, बाघसे मदोन्मत्त हाथी हुआ, हाथीसे सिंहकी योनिमें आ गया, बलवान् सिंह रहकर फिर शरभका शरीर पा गया
vyāprān nāgo madapaṭur nāgaḥ siṁhatvam āgataḥ | siṁhas tvaṁ balam āpanno bhūyaḥ śarabhātāṁ gataḥ ||
Bhishma said: “From being an elephant—restless and skilled in rut—you became a lion. And you, having become a lion and gained great strength, then again passed onward into the state of a śarabha.” The verse evokes a sequence of ever more formidable embodiments, suggesting the relentless escalation of power and pride through successive forms, and implicitly warning that mere increase of strength does not by itself secure wisdom, restraint, or true dharma.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the progression into increasingly powerful forms (elephant → lion → śarabha) to imply that the pursuit of sheer strength and dominance can keep intensifying, yet without inner restraint it does not culminate in righteousness. True dharma requires self-mastery, not merely greater power.
Bhishma addresses someone (implicitly a being/person under discussion) by describing a chain of transformations into stronger creatures—first an elephant in rut, then a lion, and then the even mightier śarabha—using this as a moral illustration about the dynamics of power and the dangers of unchecked pride.