Shloka 12
Taḍāga-Phala and Vṛkṣāropaṇa
Merit of Ponds and Tree-Planting
एतस्य त्वपनीतस्य समाधि तात चिन्तय । यथा सुखगम: पन्था भवेत् त्वद्रश्मिभावित:
etasyā tvapanītasya samādhi tāta cintaya | yathā sukhagamaḥ panthā bhavet tvadraśmibhāvitaḥ ||
Bhishma berkata: “Wahai anakku, kini setelah hal ini disingkirkan/diperbetulkan, fikirkanlah suatu penawar yang wajar. Aturlah agar jalan yang dipanaskan dan diterangi oleh sinar-sinarmu menjadi mudah dan selamat untuk dilalui.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
When a wrong has occurred, one should not stop at regret; one must actively devise a practical remedy that restores ease and welfare for others. Ethical responsibility includes making conditions safe and workable again.
Bhishma addresses someone affectionately as ‘tāta’ and urges them to think of a concrete resolution after an issue has been ‘removed/undone,’ specifically so that a path affected by the person’s ‘rays’ (heat/light, i.e., influence or power) becomes easy to traverse.