Shloka 5
Rudra-Śiva: Names, Two Natures, and the Logic of Epithets (रुद्रनाम-बहुरूपत्व-प्रकरणम्)
पूर्वण वदनेनाहमिन्द्रत्वमनुशास्मि ह । उत्तरेण त्वया सार्थ रमाम्यहमनिन्दिते
pūrveṇa vadanenāham indratvam anuśāsmi ha | uttareṇa tvayā sārtha ramāmy aham anindite ||
Bhishma nói: “Với gương mặt hướng về phương Đông, ta ban bố phép tắc về quyền uy của Indra. Còn với gương mặt hướng Bắc, hỡi người không tì vết, ta vui thích trong cuộc đàm đạo cùng nàng.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights dharma as ordered instruction: authority and governance (symbolized by Indra’s office) are to be regulated through proper injunctions, while ethical discourse is also sustained through respectful, pleasing dialogue with a worthy interlocutor.
Bhīṣma speaks in a stylized, symbolic manner, describing himself as addressing different matters through different ‘faces’ oriented to directions: one aspect of his speech issues rulings about sovereignty, while another aspect enjoys conversation with the addressed ‘blameless’ listener.