Shloka 86

Vyāghra–Gomāyu Saṃvāda (व्याघ्रगोमायु संवाद) — Testing Character Beneath Appearances

Devanagari script

कश्रिदेव हिते भर्तुर्दिश्यते न परात्मनो: । कार्यपिक्षा हि वर्तन्ते भावस्निग्धा: सुदुर्लभा:,'ऐसा मनुष्य कोई एक ही होता है, जो अपने या दूसरेके हितमें रत न रहकर स्वामीके ही हितमें संलग्न दिखायी देता हो; क्योंकि अपने कार्यकी अपेक्षा रखकर स्वार्थलाधनका उद्देश्य लेकर प्रेम करनेवाले तो बहुत होते हैं, परंतु शुद्धभावसे स्नेह रखनेवाले मनुष्य अत्यन्त दुर्लभ हैं

Transliteration

kaścid eva hite bhartur diśyate na parātmanoḥ | kāryāpekṣā hi vartante bhāvasnigdhāḥ sudurlabhāḥ ||

Translation

Bhishma berkata: “Amat jarang orang yang tampak menumpukan diri semata-mata pada kebajikan tuannya, bukan pada keuntungan dirinya atau pihak lain. Ramai yang berkasih-sayang sambil mengintai tujuan dan laba yang diharapkan; tetapi mereka yang memelihara niat baik yang murni dan tidak mementingkan diri amat sukar ditemui.”

Word by Word

कश्चित्someone, a certain person

एवindeed, only

हितेin the welfare/benefit

भर्तुःof the master/lord

दिश्यतेis seen/appears

नnot

परात्मनोःof oneself and of another (lit. of self-and-other)

कार्यापेक्षाःthose having expectation of (their) own work/interest

हिfor, indeed

वर्तन्तेexist, are found, behave

भावस्निग्धाःaffectionate out of pure feeling

सुदुर्लभाःvery rare

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

Bhishma

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

True loyalty is rare: many show affection while pursuing their own aims, but genuinely selfless goodwill—seeking only the master’s welfare without personal or third-party interest—is exceedingly uncommon.

What is happening in the narrative?

In the Shanti Parva’s instruction on dharma and conduct, Bhishma is advising about the difficulty of finding truly sincere, disinterested supporters or servants, contrasting common self-interested attachment with rare pure-hearted devotion.