Shloka 4

प्रजाविसर्ग-तत्त्वनिर्णयः | Cosmogony of Elemental Emergence

Bharadvāja–Bhṛgu Dialogue

Devanagari script

सोअब्रवीत्‌ पितरं पुत्र: स्वाध्यायकरणे रतम्‌ | मोक्षधर्मार्थकुशलो लोकतत्त्वविचक्षण:

Transliteration

bhīṣma uvāca |

so 'bravīt pitaraṃ putraḥ svādhyāya-karaṇe ratam |

mokṣa-dharmārtha-kuśalo loka-tattva-vicakṣaṇaḥ |

yasya vāg-manasī syātāṃ samyak praṇihite sadā |

tapas tyāgaś ca satyaṃ ca sa vai sarvam avāpnuyāt ||

Translation

ସେ ପୁତ୍ର ମୋକ୍ଷ, ଧର୍ମ ଓ ଅର୍ଥରେ କୁଶଳ ଏବଂ ଲୋକତତ୍ତ୍ୱରେ ବିଚକ୍ଷଣ ଥିଲା। ସ୍ୱାଧ୍ୟାୟରେ ନିରତ ନିଜ ପିତାଙ୍କୁ ସେ କହିଲା—“ଯାହାର ବାକ୍‌ ଓ ମନ ସଦା ସମ୍ୟକ୍ ଭାବେ ନିୟୋଜିତ ଓ ସଂୟତ ଥାଏ, ଯାହାରେ ତପ, ତ୍ୟାଗ ଓ ସତ୍ୟ ରହେ—ସେ ନିଶ୍ଚୟ ସମସ୍ତକୁ ପ୍ରାପ୍ତ କରେ।”

Word by Word

• {'bhīṣma uvāca': 'Bhishma said', "so 'bravīt": 'he said

• he spoke', 'pitaraṃ': 'to the father', 'putraḥ': 'the son', 'svādhyāya': 'self-study

• recitation/study of the Veda', 'svādhyāya-karaṇe ratam': 'engaged in the practice of svādhyāya

• devoted to study', 'mokṣa': 'liberation

• spiritual freedom', 'dharma': 'righteous duty

• moral order', 'artha': 'material prosperity

• practical aims', 'kuśalaḥ': 'skilled

• proficient', 'loka-tattva': 'the reality/principle of the world

• how the world truly is', 'vicakṣaṇaḥ': 'discerning

• perceptive', 'yasya': 'of whom

• whose', 'vāk': 'speech', 'manas': 'mind', 'vāg-manasī': 'speech and mind (together)', 'samyak': 'properly

• rightly', 'praṇihite': 'directed

• set (upon what is right)', 'sadā': 'always', 'tapas': 'austerity

• disciplined effort', 'tyāgaḥ': 'renunciation

• relinquishment', 'satyaṃ': 'truth

• truthfulness', 'sarvam': 'everything

• all aims', 'avāpnuyāt': 'would attain

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Bhishma
• son (putra)
• father (pitṛ)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse teaches that inner alignment—keeping speech and mind consistently and rightly directed—combined with austerity (tapas), renunciation (tyāga), and truthfulness (satya) leads to the fulfillment of all human aims, including liberation.

What is happening in the narrative?

Bhishma narrates a scene where a wise son, knowledgeable about moksha, dharma, and artha, speaks to his father who is devoted to svādhyāya (sacred study), offering a concise ethical-spiritual maxim about disciplined speech, disciplined mind, and key virtues.