Shloka 17
Adhyāya 9: Pratiśruta-Dāna
The Duty to Fulfill Promised Gifts
श्रुतश्चापि मया भूय: कृष्णस्यापि विशाम्पते | कथां कथयत: पूर्व ब्राह्मणं प्रति पाण्डव
śrutaś cāpi mayā bhūyaḥ kṛṣṇasyāpi viśāmpate | kathāṃ kathayataḥ pūrvaṃ brāhmaṇaṃ prati pāṇḍava prajānātha pāṇḍunandana ||
Bhīṣma disse: “Ó senhor dos povos, ó Pāṇḍava, ó filho de Pāṇḍu—esta mesma matéria eu também a ouvi novamente do próprio Kṛṣṇa, quando outrora ele narrava a um brâmane um relato semelhante. Assim, o que exponho não é mero ‘ouvi dizer’, mas um ensinamento confirmado por palavra autorizada.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhīṣma emphasizes the reliability of dharma-instruction by grounding it in authoritative transmission: he has heard the same teaching directly from Kṛṣṇa, who earlier taught it to a brāhmaṇa. The verse highlights that ethical guidance is strengthened when confirmed by respected sources and repeated in proper contexts.
Bhīṣma, instructing Yudhiṣṭhira in the Anuśāsana Parva, introduces or reinforces a teaching by stating that he previously heard this very discourse from Kṛṣṇa while Kṛṣṇa was narrating a similar story to a brāhmaṇa. It functions as a credentialing preface to the instruction that follows.