Shloka 22

Bhīṣma’s Recollection of the Duel: Charioteer’s Fall, Brahmin Protection, and Portents after Rāma’s Collapse

Devanagari script

ततो हाहाकृते लोके सदेवासुरराक्षसे । इदमन्तरमित्येवं मोक्तुकामो5स्मि भारत

Transliteration

tato hāhākṛte loke sadevāsurarākṣase | idam antaram ity evaṁ moktukāmo 'smi bhārata ||

Translation

تب دیوتاؤں، اسوروں اور راکشسوں سمیت ساری دنیا میں ہاہاکار مچ گیا۔ اے بھارت! “یہی مناسب موقع ہے” سمجھ کر، اس مختصر وقفے کو غنیمت جانتے ہوئے میں اب کلام کرنے (اور جو کرنا چاہیے وہ بیان کرنے) کو آمادہ ہوں۔

Word by Word

ततःthen, thereafter

हाहाकृतेin (a state of) wailing/crying 'hā hā'

लोकेin the world

सदेवtogether with the gods

असुरwith the asuras

राक्षसेwith the rākṣasas

इदम्this

अन्तरम्interval, gap, opportunity

इतिthus (quotative)

एवम्in this manner

मोक्तुकामःdesiring to release/let go

अस्मिI am

भारतO Bhārata

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

Bhīṣma

Bhārata (addressee, i.e., Dhṛtarāṣṭra/descendant of Bharata)

Devas

Asuras

Rākṣasas

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

In a moment of universal turmoil, Bhīṣma emphasizes the ethical urgency of using a rare ‘interval’—a brief opening before irreversible harm—to speak and act according to dharma.

What is happening in the narrative?

Bhīṣma, addressing a Bharata prince (commonly Dhṛtarāṣṭra in this context), notes that the world is in an uproar and declares his intention to use the intervening moment to deliver counsel—implying a last chance to avert or mitigate impending catastrophe.