Shloka 15

Bhīṣma’s Counsel on Reconciliation and Partition (भीष्मोपदेशः—संधि-राज्यविभागविचारः)

Devanagari script

तथैव मुनिजा वार्क्षी तपोभिभर्भावितात्मन: । संगताभूद्‌ दश भ्रातृनेकनाम्न: प्रचेतस:,इसी प्रकार कण्डु मुनिकी पुत्री वाक्षीने तपस्यासे पवित्र अन्तःकरणवाले दस प्रचेताओंके साथ, जिनका एक ही नाम था और जो आपसमें भाई-भाई थे, विवाहसम्बन्ध स्थापित किया था

Transliteration

tathaiva munijā vārkṣī tapobhir bhāvitātmanaḥ | saṅgatābhūd daśa bhrātṝn ekanāmnaḥ pracetasaḥ ||

Translation

Do mesmo modo, Vārkṣī—filha do sábio Kaṇḍu, com o íntimo purificado e fortalecido pelas austeridades—entrou numa aliança matrimonial com os dez irmãos Pracetas, todos conhecidos por um único nome comum e unidos como irmãos.

Word by Word

तथाthus, in the same way

एवindeed, just

मुनिजाthe sage-born woman (daughter of a sage)

वार्क्षीVārkṣī (proper name)

तपोभिःby austerities

भर्भावितात्मनःof (one) whose inner self was purified/strengthened

संगताjoined, united

अभूत्became

दशten

भ्रातॄन्brothers

एकनाम्नःof the same name

प्रचेतसःof the Pracetases (a group of ten)

Speaker

युधिछिर उवाच

Characters & Entities

य

युधिष्ठिर (Yudhiṣṭhira)

क

कण्डु मुनि (Sage Kaṇḍu)

व

वार्क्षी (Vārkṣī)

प

प्रचेतसः (the ten Pracetas brothers)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights tapas as a means of inner refinement (bhāvitātman) and presents marriage as a dharmic social bond that links lineages; ethical emphasis falls on purity of conduct and the orderly continuation of family lines.

What is happening in the narrative?

Yudhiṣṭhira recounts that Vārkṣī, the sage Kaṇḍu’s daughter, formed a marital union with the ten Pracetas brothers, who are collectively known by one shared name and are described as mutually united as brothers.