Shloka 38
भीष्मपर्व — अध्याय ६२: वासुदेवमहात्म्यप्रशंसा (देव–ब्रह्मसंवादः)
“वीर पितामह! निश्चय ही पाण्डव आपके कृपापात्र हैं, तभी तो मेरी सेनाका वध हो रहा है और आप चुपचाप इसकी दुर्दशाको सहते चले जा रहे हैं ।।
sañjaya uvāca | vīra pitāmaha! niścaya hi pāṇḍavā āpake kṛpāpātrāḥ santi, tasmād eva mama senāyāḥ vadho bhavati, bhavān ca tūṣṇīṃ tūṣṇīṃ tasyā durdaśāṃ sahate calito 'sti || so 'smi vācyas tvayā rājan pūrvam eva samāgame | na yotsye pāṇḍavān saṅkhye nāpi pārṣata-sātyakī ||
三阇耶说道：“英勇的祖父啊！般度五子必定是你慈悲所向；因此我的军队正被屠戮，而你却默然忍受其覆灭。大王啊，你本该早些告诉我，就在交战之前：‘我在战场上不与般度诸子交锋——也不与德里什塔丢姆那交锋，也不与萨提亚基交锋。’”
संजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the ethical tension between formal allegiance and inner moral inclination: a commander’s partiality or compassion, if it limits his commitment to a cause, should be declared openly beforehand, because silence in war can become complicity in avoidable destruction.
Sanjaya reports a complaint directed at Bhishma: the speaker interprets Bhishma’s restraint as compassion for the Pandavas, blaming it for the Kaurava losses, and says Bhishma should have announced before the battle that he would not fight the Pandavas, Dhrishtadyumna, or Satyaki.