अकृतव्रण उवाच
दुःखद्वयम् इदं भद्रे कतरस्य चिकीर्षसि ॥
प्रतिकर्तव्यम् अबले तत् त्वं वत्से ब्रवीहि मे ॥
यदि सौभपतिर् भद्रे नियोक्तव्यो मते तव ॥
नियोक्ष्यति महात्मा तं रामस् त्वद्धितकाम्यया ॥
अथापगेयं भीष्मं तं रामेणेच्छसि धीमता ॥
रणे विनिर्जितं द्रष्टुं कुर्यात् तद् अपि भार्गवः ॥
सृञ्जयस्य वचः श्रुत्वा तव चैव शुचिस्मिते ॥
यद् अत्रानन्तरं कार्यं तद् अद्यैव विचिन्त्यताम् ॥
अम्बोवाच
अपनीतास्मि भीष्मेण भगवन्न् अविजानता ॥
न हि जानाति मे भीष्मो ब्रह्मञ् शाल्वगतं मनः ॥
akṛtavraṇa uvāca
duḥkhadvayam idaṃ bhadre katarasya cikīrṣasi ||
pratikartavyam abale tat tvaṃ vatse bravīhi me ||
yadi saubhapatir bhadre niyoktavyo mate tava ||
niyokṣyati mahātmā taṃ rāmas tvaddhitakāmyayā ||
athāpageyaṃ bhīṣmaṃ taṃ rāmeṇecchasi dhīmatā ||
raṇe vinirjitaṃ draṣṭuṃ kuryāt tad api bhārgavaḥ ||
sṛñjayasya vacaḥ śrutvā tava caiva śucismite ||
yad atrānantaraṃ kāryaṃ tad adyaiva vicintyatām ||
ambovāca
apanītāsmi bhīṣmeṇa bhagavann avijānatā ||
na hi jānāti me bhīṣmo brahmañ śālvagataṃ manaḥ ||
Akritavrana said: 'O gracious one, two misfortunes lie before you. O defenseless one, my child, tell me: for which of them do you wish retribution? If, O gracious one, in your judgment the lord of Saubha must be compelled, then the great-souled Rama, wishing your good, will compel him. And if you wish to see the son of the Ganga, Bhishma, vanquished in battle by the wise Rama, then this too Bhargava can do. Having heard the word of Srinjaya and your own word, O bright-smiling one, let it be decided this very day what should be done next.' Amba said: 'O venerable one, Bhishma carried me off without knowing the truth. O brahmin, Bhishma does not know that my mind was set on Shalva.'
4d350698646b · published Jul 17, 2026, 6:36:31 AM UTC
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In this chapter Amba's wish becomes a clearly formulated demand: not merely to find protection, but to see Bhishma requited. Akritavrana distinguishes two possible courses of action — compelling Shalva or punishing Bhishma — and shows that the root of Shalva's doubt lay precisely in Amba's forcible abduction. The appearance of Rama Jamadagnya lifts the matter into the realm of the highest dharma: an ascetic bearing arms listens to a woman's suffering, seeks a just resolution, and is ready first to send word, and only then, if that word is refused, to use force. Amba names Bhishma as the source of her misfortune and asks Rama to fulfill her long-held inner vow.