Shloka 137

Adhyāya 284: Tapas as a Corrective to Household Attachment

Parāśara’s Instruction

Devanagari script

सूचीरोमा हरिश्मश्रुरूर्ध्वकेशश्वलाचल: । गीतवादित्रतत्त्वज्ञो गीतवादनकप्रिय:

Transliteration

sūcīromā hariśmaśrur ūrdhvakeśaś calācalaḥ | gītavāditratattvajño gītavādanakapriyaḥ ||

Translation

Bhīṣma nói: “Lông trên thân Ngài như mũi kim; râu và ria của Ngài đen sẫm. Tóc trên đầu dựng đứng. Ngài bao hàm cả thế giới động và thế giới tĩnh. Ngài thấu hiểu chân lý của ca khúc và nhạc khí, và đặc biệt ưa thích việc ca hát cùng tấu nhạc.”

Word by Word

• सूचीरोमा: having hair like needles (bristly-haired)
• सूचीरोमा: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सूचीरोमन्
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• हरिश्मश्रुः: having tawny/dark moustache and beard
• हरिश्मश्रुः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: हरिश्मश्रु
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• ऊर्ध्वकेशः: having hair standing upright
• ऊर्ध्वकेशः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ऊर्ध्वकेश
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• चलाचलः: both moving and unmoving (all beings)
• चलाचलः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: चलाचल
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• गीतवादित्रतत्त्वज्ञः: knower of the principles of singing and instruments
• गीतवादित्रतत्त्वज्ञः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: गीतवादित्रतत्त्वज्ञ
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• गीतवादनकप्रियः: fond of singing and playing (music)
• गीतवादनकप्रियः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: गीतवादनकप्रिय
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Bhīṣma
• gīta (song)
• vāditra (musical instruments)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights a figure marked by unusual ascetic/cosmic traits yet also refined knowledge of the arts: true excellence can include mastery of aesthetic disciplines (song and instruments) alongside a broader, all-encompassing vision of reality (calācala—moving and unmoving).

What is happening in the narrative?

In Bhīṣma’s discourse in the Śānti Parva, he is describing a particular being/person by distinctive physical signs and capacities—especially his comprehensive nature and his expertise and fondness for music—within a larger didactic context.