Shloka 14

उशनसः (शुक्रस्य) चरितम् — The Account of Uśanā (Śukra): Yoga, Grievance, and Pacification

Devanagari script

निर्जितेनासहायेन हृतराज्येन भारत । अशोचता शत्रुमध्ये बुद्धिमास्थाय केवलाम्‌

Transliteration

bhīṣma uvāca | nirjitena asahāyena hṛtarājyena bhārata | aśocatā śatrumadhye buddhim āsthāya kevalām naraśvara | asmin viṣaye ekaḥ prācīna itihāsaḥ kathyate; taṃ ekacittaḥ śṛṇu | bharatanandana! pūrvakāle vṛtrāsuraḥ parājitaḥ aiśvarya-bhraṣṭaḥ abhavat | tasya kaścid api sahāyaḥ na avaśiṣṭaḥ | devaiḥ tasya rājyaṃ hṛtam | tādṛśyāṃ daśāyām api saḥ asuraḥ yathā ceṣṭitavān, tasyaiva asyāṃ kathāyāṃ varṇanam | saḥ śatrūṇāṃ madhye api āsaktiśūnya-buddhim āśritya śokaṃ na karoti |

Translation

毗湿摩说道：噢婆罗多后裔！他虽被征服、孤立无援、又被夺去国土，却不悲恸；即便身处敌阵之中，噢大王，他仍依止于清净而不执著的智慧。关于此事，有一则古传——请你一心聆听。往昔，弗栗陀罗阿修罗（Vṛtrāsura）被击败而失其王权；再无援手，诸天夺取了他的疆土。然而即在那般境地，此处所述正是那阿修罗的奋勉之道：立于群敌之间，他不生执取，故不沉沦于忧苦。

Word by Word

• निर्जितेन: by/with (one) defeated
• निर्जितेन: Karana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: निर्जित (√जि)
• Form: Masculine/Neuter, Instrumental, Singular

• असहायेन: without an ally/help
• असहायेन: Karana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: असहाय
• Form: Masculine/Neuter, Instrumental, Singular

• हृतराज्येन: whose kingdom has been taken away
• हृतराज्येन: Karana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: हृत-राज्य
• Form: Masculine/Neuter, Instrumental, Singular

• भारत: O Bharata
• Type: Noun
• Root: भारत
• Form: Masculine, Vocative, Singular

• अशोचता: did not grieve
• Type: Verb
• Root: अ-शोचत् (√शुच्)
• Form: Imperfect (Laṅ), 3rd, Singular

• शत्रु: of enemies
• Type: Noun
• Root: शत्रु
• Form: Masculine, Genitive, Plural

• मध्ये: in the midst
• मध्ये: Adhikarana
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: मध्य
• Form: true

• बुद्धिम्: intelligence, understanding
• बुद्धिम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: बुद्धि
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Singular

• आस्थाय: having resorted to / adopting
• Type: Verb
• Root: आ-स्था (√स्था)
• Form: Absolutive (Gerund), Parasmaipada (usage)

• केवलाम्: pure, exclusive (alone)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: केवला
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Singular

• नर-ईश्वर: O lord of men (king)
• Type: Noun
• Root: नर + ईश्वर
• Form: Masculine, Vocative, Singular

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Bhishma (भीष्म)
• Bharata/Yudhiṣṭhira (भारत, नर-ईश्वर, भरतनन्दन)
• Vṛtrāsura (वृत्रासुर)
• Devas (देवाः)
• Kingdom/sovereignty (राज्य, ऐश्वर्य)
• Enemies (शत्रु)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Even when one is defeated, abandoned, and dispossessed, grief is not inevitable: by taking refuge in pure, unattached discernment (kevalā buddhi) and relinquishing clinging (āsakti), one can remain steady amid enemies and adversity.

What is happening in the narrative?

Bhishma introduces an ancient illustrative episode: Vṛtrāsura, after being defeated and stripped of his realm by the gods, stands among enemies without lamentation. The text sets up his conduct as a model for how to act when fortune and power collapse.