Shloka 5

Adhyāya 119: Vyāsa–Kīṭa-saṃvāda

Tapas-bala and karmic ascent across yoni

Devanagari script

भीष्म उवाच मांसस्याभक्षणाद्‌ राजन्‌ यो धर्म: कुरुनन्दन । तन्मे शूणु यथातत्त्वं यथास्य विधिरुत्तम:

Transliteration

bhīṣma uvāca māṁsasyābhakṣaṇād rājan yo dharmaḥ kurunandana | tan me śṛṇu yathātattvaṁ yathāsya vidhir uttamaḥ ||

Translation

毗湿摩说道：“大王啊，俱卢之欢欣者啊，请从我这里如实听闻：那以戒食肉为体的法，以及奉行此法的殊胜规制。”

Word by Word

• भीष्मः: Bhishma
• भीष्मः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: भीष्म
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• उवाच: said
• Type: Verb
• Root: वच्
• Form: Perfect, 3rd, Singular

• मांसस्य: of meat
• Type: Noun
• Root: मांस
• Form: Neuter, Genitive, Singular

• अभक्षणात्: from abstaining (from eating)
• अभक्षणात्: Apadana
• Type: Noun
• Root: अभक्षण
• Form: Neuter, Ablative, Singular

• राजन्: O king
• Type: Noun
• Root: राजन्
• Form: Masculine, Vocative, Singular

• यः: which/that
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: यद्
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• धर्मः: dharma, duty
• Type: Noun
• Root: धर्म
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• कुरुनन्दन: O joy of the Kurus
• Type: Noun
• Root: कुरुनन्दन
• Form: Masculine, Vocative, Singular

• तत्: that (topic)
• तत्: Karma
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: तद्
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular

• मे: to me
• मे: Sampradana
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: अस्मद्
• Form: Dative, Singular

• शृणु: hear, listen
• Type: Verb
• Root: श्रु
• Form: Imperative, 2nd, Singular

• यथातत्त्वम्: as it truly is
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यथा-तत्त्वम्
• Form: true

• यथा: as, according as
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यथा
• Form: true

• अस्य: of this (dharma)
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: इदम्
• Form: Masculine/Neuter, Genitive, Singular

• विधिः: rule, procedure
• Type: Noun
• Root: विधि
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• उत्तमः: excellent, best
• Type: Adjective
• Root: उत्तम
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Bhishma
• the King (Yudhishthira, implied)
• Kuru dynasty (as 'Kurunandana')
• meat (māṁsa)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Bhishma introduces the dharma of abstaining from meat and promises to explain both its true rationale and the proper, authoritative method of observing it.

What is happening in the narrative?

In the Anushasana Parva’s didactic setting, Bhishma addresses the king (Yudhishthira) and begins a formal instruction on the ethical and scriptural principles connected with refraining from meat.