Shloka 17
Janamejaya’s Appeal for Pacification and Śaunaka’s Counsel on Humility (जनमेजय-शौनक संवादः)
इत्युक्त्वा तं तदा तत्र विवर्णवदनो5भवत्,ऐसा कहकर कबूतरका मुख कुछ उदास हो गया। वह इस चिन्तामें पड़ गया कि अब मुझे क्या करना चाहिये? भरतश्रेष्ठ वह अपनी कापोती वृत्तिकी निन््दा करने लगा
ity uktvā taṃ tadā tatra vivarṇa-vadano ’bhavat
Sinabi ni Bhīṣma: Pagkasabi niya nito roon at noon din, namutla at nalugmok ang mukha ng kalapati. Nalubog siya sa balisang pag-iisip—“Ano ang dapat kong gawin ngayon?”—at, O pinakamainam sa mga Bharata, sinimulan niyang sisihin ang sarili niyang asal bilang isang kalapati.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights ethical self-scrutiny: when confronted with a difficult choice, one should examine one’s own dharma and conduct honestly, even to the point of self-critique, before acting.
After speaking to someone present there, the pigeon becomes visibly distressed and starts worrying about what to do next; he then begins to blame his own ‘pigeon-like’ way of conduct, indicating an inner moral conflict.