Shloka 40

मृत्यु-काल-प्रबोधनम् (Instruction on Mortality, Time, and Truth) — Mahābhārata, Śānti-parva 169

Devanagari script

जटाचीराजिनधर: स्वाध्यायपरम: शुचि: । विनीतो नियताहारो ब्रह्माण्यो वेदपारग:,तदनन्तर एक दिन कोई दूसरा ब्राह्मण उस गाँवमें आया जो जटा, वल्कल और मृगचर्म धारण किये हुए था। वह स्वाध्यायपरायण, पवित्र, विनयी, नियमके अनुकूल भोजन करनेवाला, ब्राह्मणभक्त तथा वेदोंका पारज्गत विद्वान्‌ था

Transliteration

jaṭācīrājinadharaḥ svādhyāyaparamaḥ śuciḥ | vinīto niyatāhāro brahmāṇyo vedapāragaḥ ||

Translation

ภีษมะกล่าวว่า “เขาไว้ชฎา นุ่งห่มเปลือกไม้และหนังเนื้อทราย ตั้งมั่นยิ่งในสวาธยายะ บริสุทธิ์ อ่อนน้อม สำรวมในอาหาร เคารพพราหมณ์ และเชี่ยวชาญพระเวท”

Word by Word

जटा-चीर-अजिन-धरःwearing matted hair, bark-cloth and deer-skin

स्वाध्याय-परमःdevoted chiefly to self-study (Vedic recitation)

शुचिःpure, clean

विनीतःwell-disciplined, humble

नियत-आहारःhaving regulated food/diet

ब्रह्मण्यःdevoted to Brahmins / favorable to Brahmanical dharma

वेद-पारगःone who has gone to the far shore of the Vedas; master of the Vedas

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

Bhishma

a Brahmin (brāhmaṇa)

matted locks (jaṭā)

bark-garment (cīra)

deer-skin (ajina)

the Vedas (vedāḥ)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse presents an ethical portrait of an exemplary Brahmin/ascetic: purity, humility, regulated living, reverence for dharma and Brahmins, and foremost dedication to svādhyāya (Vedic study). External marks (jaṭā, bark-cloth, deer-skin) are paired with inner discipline and learning.

What is happening in the narrative?

Bhishma describes the arrival/character of a Brahmin ascetic, emphasizing his appearance and virtues—his austere dress, commitment to sacred recitation and study, disciplined diet, and mastery of the Vedas—setting up the moral authority of the figure within the surrounding discourse.