Shloka 8

Devanagari script

यदयं परमो धर्मो यन्मां पृच्छसि भारत । आसीदू धीरो हानाकाडक्षी धर्मार्थकरणे नूप

Transliteration

yad ayaṃ paramo dharmo yan māṃ pṛcchasi bhārata | āsīd dhīro hānākāḍakṣī dharmārthakaraṇe nūpa

Translation

భీష్ముడు పలికెను—ఓ భారతా! నీవు నన్ను అడుగుతున్న ఆ పరమధర్మ విషయమున, ఒకప్పుడు ధీరుడూ దూరదృష్టిగల రాజొకడు ఉండెను; అతడు ధర్మార్థసాధనలో నిత్యము నిమగ్నుడై యుండెను.

Word by Word

• yat: which/that (thing)
• yat: Karma
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: yad
• Form: Neuter, Nominative/Accusative, Singular

• ayam: this
• ayam: Karta
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: idam
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• paramaḥ: supreme
• paramaḥ: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: parama
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• dharmaḥ: dharma, duty
• dharmaḥ: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: dharma
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• yat: which/that (thing)
• yat: Karma
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: yad
• Form: Neuter, Nominative/Accusative, Singular

• mām: me
• mām: Karma
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: asmad
• Form: —, Accusative, Singular

• pṛcchasi: you ask
• pṛcchasi: Karta
• Type: Verb
• Root: prach
• Form: Present (Lat), 2, Singular, Parasmaipada

• bhārata: O Bhārata
• bhārata: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun (vocative, patronymic)
• Root: bhārata
• Form: Masculine, Vocative, Singular

• āsīt: was
• āsīt: Karta
• Type: Verb
• Root: as
• Form: Imperfect (Lan), 3, Singular, Parasmaipada

• dhīraḥ: a steadfast/wise (man)
• dhīraḥ: Karta
• Type: Adjective (used substantively)
• Root: dhīra
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• hāna: abandonment, loss
• hāna: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: hāna
• Form: Feminine, —, —

• ākāḍakṣī: (unclear/possibly corrupt reading)
• ākāḍakṣī: Karta
• Type: Noun/Adjective
• Root: ākāḍakṣī
• Form: Feminine, Nominative, Singular

• dharma-artha-karaṇe: in the undertaking of dharma and artha
• dharma-artha-karaṇe: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun (compound)
• Root: dharma-artha-karaṇa
• Form: Neuter, Locative, Singular

• nūpa: (unclear/possibly corrupt reading; maybe a vocative)
• nūpa: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: nūpa
• Form: Masculine, Nominative/Vocative, Singular

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Bhīṣma
• Bhārata (Yudhiṣṭhira)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Bhīṣma frames the discussion as an inquiry into “parama dharma” (the highest ethical duty) and signals that the answer will be illustrated through the example of an ideal ruler who actively practiced dharma together with artha—showing that moral duty and public welfare must be integrated in governance.

What is happening in the narrative?

In Śānti Parva, Yudhiṣṭhira (addressed as Bhārata) asks Bhīṣma about the highest dharma. Bhīṣma begins his reply by introducing a past exemplar—an unwavering king—setting up a didactic story or precedent to explain the principle.