Shloka 18

Devanagari script

बहुना च किमुक्तेन गम्यतां यत्र वाउ्छसि । वपुष्मन्त्यो वयं सर्वा: किमस्माकं त्वयानघे,इस विषयमें बहुत बात करनेसे क्या लाभ? तुम जहाँ जाना चाहो--चली जाओ। अनघे! हम सब लोगोंका शरीर तो यों ही हृष्ट-पुष्ट और सुन्दर है; अतः तुमसे हमें क्या काम है?

Transliteration

bahunā ca kimuktena gamyatāṁ yatra vāñchasi | vapuṣmantyo vayaṁ sarvāḥ kimasmākaṁ tvayānaghe ||

Translation

భీష్ముడు పలికెను— ఎక్కువ మాటలతో ఏమి ప్రయోజనం? నీవు ఎక్కడికి వెళ్లదలచుకున్నావో అక్కడికి వెళ్లిపో. ఓ అనఘే! మేమందరం ఇప్పటికే సుశరీరులమూ బలవంతులమూ; మరి నీతో మాకు ఏమి అవసరం?

Word by Word

बहुनाwith much (talk)

चand

किम्what?

उक्तेनby what has been said / with speaking

गम्यताम्let (it/you) be gone; go

यत्रwhere

वाor / indeed

इच्छसिyou desire

वपुष्मन्त्यःpossessing beauty/body; well-formed

वयम्we

सर्वाःall

किम्what?

अस्माकम्of us / our

त्वयाby/with you

अनघेO blameless one

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

Bhishma

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 emphasizes restraint and decisiveness in speech: when further discussion is fruitless, one should not multiply words. Ethically, it also conveys detachment—declining an offered association or benefit by stating self-sufficiency and allowing the other freedom to go as they wish.

What is happening in the narrative?

Bhishma, as the speaker, dismisses extended argument and grants the addressed woman freedom to depart wherever she chooses, adding that the group is already physically well-endowed and therefore has no need of her—an abrupt closure of the exchange.