Shloka 22
अध्याय २८१ — दानधर्मः, न्यायागतधनम्, ऋणत्रय-परिशोधनं च
Dāna ethics, lawful wealth, and settling obligations
Devanagari script
तामुवाच महाबाहो ब्रह्म॒वध्यां पितामह:
Transliteration
tām uvāca mahābāho brahmavadhyāṃ pitāmahaḥ
Translation
భీష్ముడు అన్నాడు—ఓ మహాబాహో! పితామహుడు ఆ బ్రహ్మవధ్యను ఉద్దేశించి పలికాడు—బ్రాహ్మణ తేజస్సు రక్షణలో ఉన్నందున ఆమె అవధ్యురాలు.
Word by Word
ताम्her
ताम्:
Karma
TypeNoun
Rootतद् (स्त्री. सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
FormFeminine, Accusative, Singular
उवाचsaid/spoke
उवाच:
Karta
TypeVerb
Rootवच् (धातु)
FormPerfect (लिट्), 3rd, Singular, Parasmaipada
महाबाहोO mighty-armed one
महाबाहो:
TypeNoun
Rootमहाबाहु (प्रातिपदिक)
FormMasculine, Vocative, Singular
ब्रह्मवध्याम्one whose killing is (a) brahma-slaying (i.e., a brahmin-woman / one protected as a brahmin)
ब्रह्मवध्याम्:
Karma
TypeAdjective
Rootब्रह्मवध्या (प्रातिपदिक)
FormFeminine, Accusative, Singular
पितामहःthe Grandsire (Brahmā / Bhīṣma, contextually)
पितामहः:
Karta
TypeNoun
Rootपितामह (प्रातिपदिक)
FormMasculine, Nominative, Singular
Speaker
भीष्म उवाच
Characters & Entities
B
Bhīṣma (Pitāmaha)M
mahābāhu (addressee, traditionally Yudhiṣṭhira)T
tām (an unnamed woman, described as brahmavadhyā)Character Dynamics
Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)
War Context
Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)
Philosophical Teaching
Political Layer
Meter (Chandas)
Sandhi Notes
Educational Q&A
The verse signals a dharmic boundary: certain persons are regarded as inviolable (brahmavadhyā), and ethical governance requires restraint and protection of those under sacred or social protection.
Bhīṣma, narrating to the ‘mighty-armed’ listener, introduces a moment where the Grandsire speaks to a woman characterized as ‘not to be slain,’ setting up an instruction or counsel grounded in dharma.