Shloka 18
भीष्म–रामयुद्धवर्णनम्
Bhīṣma’s Account of the Strategic Engagement with Rāma Jāmadagnya
न च रामेण मर्तव्यं कदाचिदपि पार्थिव । ततः समुत्पन्नमिदं प्रस्वापं युज्यतामिति
na ca rāmeṇa martavyaṃ kadācid api pārthiva | tataḥ samutpannam idaṃ prasvāpaṃ yujyatām iti
ਭੀਸ਼ਮ ਨੇ ਆਖਿਆ—ਹੇ ਰਾਜਨ! ਰਾਮ ਦਾ ਵਧ ਕਦੇ ਵੀ ਨਹੀਂ ਕਰਨਾ ਚਾਹੀਦਾ। ਇਸ ਲਈ ਇਸੀ ਵਿਚਾਰ ਤੋਂ ਉਪਜਿਆ ਇਹ ‘ਪ੍ਰਸ੍ਵਾਪ’ (ਨੀਂਦ ਲਿਆਉਣ ਵਾਲਾ ਉਪਾਅ) ਅਮਲ ਵਿੱਚ ਲਿਆਓ।
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhīṣma frames a moral and strategic restraint: certain figures (here, Rāma) are not to be killed, so one should adopt a non-lethal means—such as rendering someone unconscious/asleep—when force is necessary but killing is prohibited.
Bhīṣma is advising a king in a tense political-military context. He rejects the option of killing Rāma and instead recommends implementing a plan that neutralizes the threat through induced sleep, aligning action with ethical limits.