Shloka 6
Śara-śayyā-sthita-bhīṣma-saṃvāda-prastāvaḥ
The Prelude to Questioning Bhīṣma on the Bed of Arrows
तेडभिगम्य महात्मानो भरतानां पितामहम् । अन्वशोचन्त गण्ड्रेयमादित्यं पतितं यथा
teḍabhigamya mahātmāno bharatānāṁ pitāmaham | anvaśocanta gāṅdreyam ādityaṁ patitaṁ yathā ||
Pagkaraan, ang mga dakilang-loob na nakaligtas ay lumapit kay Bhīṣma, ang lolo ng angkan ng Bharata. Nang makita nilang nakabagsak siya na wari’y araw na ibinaba mula sa langit, paulit-ulit silang nanaghoy at ibinuhos ang dalamhati—larawang nagpapahiwatig na ang matapos ang digmaan ay hindi lamang panalo o talo, kundi isang pagbagsak ng katarungang-dharma na humihingi ng pagninilay sa dharma at sa halaga ng karahasan.
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the ethical weight of war: even the victors are compelled to mourn when dharma’s foremost elder lies struck down. The simile of the fallen sun suggests a world dimmed—victory cannot erase the moral and emotional consequences of violence.
After the great war, the surviving leaders go to the battlefield where Bhīṣma lies fallen. They approach him and repeatedly express grief, recognizing him as the venerable grandsire of the Bharata line and as a towering moral presence now brought low.