Shloka 113

Devanagari script

पुत्रश्न पितरं मोहात्‌ प्रेषयिष्यति कर्मसु । ब्राह्मणै: कारयिष्यन्ति वृषला: पादधावनम्‌

Transliteration

putraśna pitaraṃ mohāt preṣayiṣyati karmasu | brāhmaṇaiḥ kārayiṣyanti vṛṣalāḥ pādadhāvanam ||

Translation

ภีษมะกล่าวว่า “เมื่อถูกโมหะบังตา บุตรผู้ยังชีพด้วยรายได้ของบุตรตนเองจักใช้บิดาของตนให้ไปทำงานต่ำต้อย และคนชั้นต่ำผู้ผิดธรรมจักบังคับให้แม้พราหมณ์ต้องทำการล้างเท้า”

Word by Word

पुत्रःson

नnot

पितरम्father

मोहात्from delusion

प्रेषयिष्यतिwill send/dispatch

कर्मसुin tasks/works

ब्राह्मणैःby Brahmins

कारयिष्यन्तिwill cause (someone) to do / will have (it) done

वृषलाःŚūdras / low-born men

पादधावनम्washing of feet

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

Bhīṣma

father

son

brāhmaṇas

vṛṣalas

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 condemns moral inversion: delusion and greed lead a son to dishonor his father, and social power shifts so that the unrighteous can humiliate the virtuous. It warns that when dharma declines, natural duties—especially reverence toward parents and respect for spiritual integrity—are overturned.

What is happening in the narrative?

In Śānti Parva, Bhīṣma is describing symptoms of societal decay (often framed as signs of Kali). He depicts a future where familial duty collapses and coercive, adharmic people force brāhmaṇas into degrading service, illustrating the breakdown of rightful conduct and hierarchy.