Shloka 87

ब्राह्मणस्य पूर्वतरा वृत्तिः — The Earlier Ideal Conduct of a Brahmana

River-of-Saṃsāra Metaphor

Devanagari script

यदा हि शोचत: शोको व्यसन नापकर्षति

Transliteration

yadā hi śocataḥ śoko vyasanaṁ nāpakarṣati

Translation

毗湿摩说：人若沉于哀恸，哀恸并不能驱除灾厄；徒然哭诉，亦不能挽回不幸。故当由悲转定，以正行应对；因为忍耐与明辨，才是面对逆境的正当之道。

Word by Word

• यदा: when
• यदा: Adhikarana
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यदा
• Form: temporal adverb

• हि: indeed/for
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: हि
• Form: particle (emphasis/causal nuance)

• शोचतः: of one who is grieving / while grieving
• शोचतः: Adhikarana
• Type: Verb
• Root: शुच्
• Form: present active participle, genitive singular (m./n.) used adverbially: 'of one who grieves/while grieving'

• शोकः: grief
• शोकः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: शोक
• Form: masculine, nominative singular

• व्यसनम्: calamity/misfortune
• व्यसनम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: व्यसन
• Form: neuter, accusative singular

• न: not
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न
• Form: negation

• अपकर्षति: removes/draws away
• Type: Verb
• Root: अपकृष्
• Form: present tense (laṭ), parasmaipada, 3rd person singular

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Bhīṣma

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Grief by itself does not lessen or remove misfortune; one should move from lamentation to composure, discernment, and dharmic action as the effective way to face adversity.

What is happening in the narrative?

In Śānti Parva, Bhīṣma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on righteous conduct and mental discipline after the war; here he emphasizes that sorrow is unproductive unless transformed into steadiness and wise effort.