Shloka 6
आत्मदर्शन-उपदेशः (Ātma-darśana Upadeśa) — Mind, Senses, and the All-pervading Self
भीष्म उवाच अत्र ते वर्तयिष्येडहमितिहासं पुरातनम् । जगौ यद् भगवान् व्यास: पुत्राय परिपृच्छते
bhīṣma uvāca | atra te vartayiṣye 'ham itihāsaṃ purātanam | jagau yad bhagavān vyāsaḥ putrāya paripṛcchate ||
Sinabi ni Bhīṣma: “Yudhiṣṭhira, dito ay isasalaysay ko sa iyo ang isang sinaunang salaysay. Ito ang matandang ulat na minsang sinabi ng kagalang-galang na si Vyāsa nang tanungin siya ng kanyang anak—ang aral na iyon ang uulitin ko para sa iyo.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames the authority of the forthcoming instruction: Bhishma grounds his counsel in an ancient, respected lineage of teaching—Vyasa’s reply to his son’s inquiry—implying that ethical guidance (dharma) is best received through tested tradition and careful questioning.
Bhishma, continuing his discourse to Yudhishthira in the Shanti Parva, announces that he will now narrate an old account: the teaching once spoken by the sage Vyasa when questioned by his son (traditionally identified as Śuka).