Shloka 26
Ānṛśaṃsya–Bhakti: Śukaḥ Śakreṇa Parīkṣitaḥ
Compassion and Devotion—The Parrot Tested by Indra
नाहसे मां सहस्राक्ष ट्रुमं त्याजयितुं चिरात् समर्थमुपजीव्येमं त्यजेयं कथमद्य वै
nāhase māṃ sahasrākṣa drumam tyājayituṃ cirāt samartham upajīvyemaṃ tyajeyaṃ katham adya vai
भीष्म उवाच—सहस्राक्ष! मां प्रति अस्य द्रुमस्य वियोगं कर्तुं मा प्रयतस्व। यदा एष समर्थोऽभूत् तदा दीर्घकालं तदाश्रयेणैव मया जीवनं धारितम्; अद्य तु यदा शक्तिहीनोऽयं जातः, तं त्यक्त्वा गन्तुं कथं शक्नोमि?
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
One should not abandon a benefactor or support-system when it becomes weak; dharma includes gratitude and steadfast loyalty, especially toward those who once sustained us.
Bhīṣma addresses Indra (Sahasrākṣa), asking him not to try to separate him from a tree. Bhīṣma argues that since he long depended on it when it was strong, it would be unethical to leave it now that it is powerless.