Shloka 51

ब्राह्मणस्य पूर्वतरा वृत्तिः — The Earlier Ideal Conduct of a Brahmana

River-of-Saṃsāra Metaphor

Devanagari script

ह्वीनिषेव: सुहोत्रश्न भूरिहा पुष्पवान्‌ वृष: । सत्येषु#षभो बाहु: कपिलाश्वञी विरूपक:

Transliteration

hvīniṣevaḥ suhotraśna bhūrihā puṣpavān vṛṣaḥ | satyeṣuṣabho bāhuḥ kapilāśvañ ca virūpakaḥ ||

Translation

หฺวีนิเษวะ สุโหตรศนะ ภูริหา ปุษปวาน และวฤษะ; อีกทั้ง สัตเยษุรษภะ พาหุ กปิลาśวะ และวิรูปกะ

Word by Word

ह्वीनिषेवःHvīniṣeva (a proper name/epithet)

सुहोत्रःSu-hotṛ (good sacrificer / having good oblations; proper name)

उश्नःwarm, hot (as an epithet/name)

भूरिहाBhūri-hā (slayer of many; proper name/epithet)

पुष्पवान्flower-bearing, blossoming

वृषःbull; (also) excellent man; Vṛṣa (name/epithet)

सत्येषुin truths / among the truthful

ऋषभःbull; chief/excellent one; Ṛṣabha (name/epithet)

बाहुःarm; Bāhu (proper name/epithet)

कपिलाश्वःKapilāśva (having tawny horses; proper name)

चand

विरूपकःVirūpaka (proper name; lit. 'of diverse form')

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

Bhīṣma

Hvīniṣeva

Suhotraśna

Bhūrihā

Puṣpavān

Vṛṣa

Satyeṣuṣabha

Bāhu

Kapilāśva

Virūpaka

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 functions as a genealogical enumeration: it emphasizes continuity of lineage and the remembrance of rulers/ancestors, a common Shānti-parvan method for grounding ethical and political instruction (dharma and rājadharma) in historical exemplars.

What is happening in the narrative?

Bhīṣma is listing successive figures (likely kings or notable persons) within a lineage being discussed in this section of Śānti Parva, naming them in sequence as part of a broader account that supports instruction on conduct and governance.