Shloka 4

अध्याय १५२: लोभः पापस्य मूलम् — Greed as the Root of Wrongdoing

Devanagari script

तत्तु शल्यमनिह््त्य कथं शक्ष्यामि जीवितुम्‌ । सर्व मन्युं विनीय त्वमभि मां वद शौनक,“निश्चय ही मुझे यमराजसे भी घोर भय प्राप्त होनेवाला है, यह बात मेरे हृदयमें काँटेकी भाँति चुभ रही है। अपने हृदयसे इसको निकाले बिना मैं कैसे जीवित रह सकूँगा? अतः शौनकजी! आप समस्त क्रोधका त्याग करके मुझे उद्धारका कोई उपाय बताइये

Transliteration

tattu śalyam anihṛtya kathaṃ śakṣyāmi jīvitum | sarvaṃ manyuṃ vinīya tvam abhi māṃ vada śaunaka ||

Translation

Bhīṣma berkata: “Namun selagi duri itu belum dicabut, bagaimana mungkin aku mampu terus hidup? Wahai Śaunaka, ketepikanlah segala amarah, lalu katakan kepadaku—tunjukkanlah jalan pembebasan.”

Word by Word

• {'tat': 'that (matter/thing just mentioned)', 'tu': 'but, however', 'śalyam': 'a thorn

• figuratively, a piercing grief or anxiety lodged in the heart', 'anihṛtya (an-nihṛtya)': 'without removing

• not having extracted', 'katham': 'how?', 'śakṣyāmi': 'shall I be able (to do)?', 'jīvitum': 'to live

• to continue living', 'sarvam': 'entirely

• all', 'manyum': 'anger, wrath

• also inner agitation', 'vinīya': 'having restrained/removed

• having set aside', 'tvam': 'you', 'abhi': 'towards

• to (me)', 'mām': 'me', 'vada': 'speak

• tell', 'śaunaka': 'O Śaunaka (address to the sage)'}

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Bhīṣma
• Śaunaka

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Inner torment must be addressed directly, and guidance should be sought with a mind free from anger; self-restraint (manyu-vinaya) is presented as a prerequisite for receiving and applying liberating counsel.

What is happening in the narrative?

Bhīṣma, troubled by a piercing fear and anxiety likened to a thorn, tells the sage Śaunaka that he cannot endure without removing it, and requests Śaunaka—after setting aside anger—to instruct him in a means of deliverance.