अथ काशिपतेर् भीष्मः कन्यास् तिस्रो ऽप्सरःसमाः ॥
शुश्राव सहिता राजन् वृण्वतीर् वै स्वयं वरम् ॥
ततः स रथिनां श्रेष्ठो रथेनैकेन वर्मभृत् ॥
जगामानुमते मातुः पुरीं वाराणसीं प्रति ॥
तत्र राज्ञः समुदितान् सर्वतः समुपागतान् ॥
ददर्श कन्यास् ताश् चैव भीष्मः शंतनुनन्दनः ॥
कीर्त्यमानेषु राज्ञां तु नामस्व् अथ सहस्रशः ॥
भीष्मः स्वयं तदा राजन् वरयाम् आस ताः प्रभुः ॥
उवाच च महीपालान् राजञ् जलदनिःस्वनः ॥
रथम् आरोप्य ताः कन्या भीष्मः प्रहरतां वरः ॥
आहूय दानं कन्यानां गुणवद्भ्यः स्मृतं बुधैः ॥
अलंकृत्य यथाशक्ति प्रदाय च धनान्य् अपि ॥
प्रयच्छन्त्य् अपरे कन्यां मिथुनेन गवाम् अपि ॥
वित्तेन कथितेनान्ये बलेनान्ये ऽनुमान्य च ॥
प्रमत्ताम् उपयान्त्य् अन्ये स्वयम् अन्ये च विन्दते ॥
अष्टमं तम् अथो वित्त विवाहं कविभिः स्मृतम् ॥
स्वयंवरं तु राजन्याः प्रशंसन्त्य् उपयान्ति च ॥
प्रमथ्य तु हृताम् आहुर् ज्यायसीं धर्मवादिनः ॥
ता इमाः पृथिवीपाला जिहीर्षामि बलाद् इतः ॥
ते यतध्वं परं शक्त्या विजयायेतराय वा ॥
स्थितो ऽहं पृथिवीपाला युद्धाय कृतनिश्चयः ॥
atha kāśipater bhīṣmaḥ kanyās tisro 'psaraḥsamāḥ ||
śuśrāva sahitā rājan vṛṇvatīr vai svayaṃ varam ||
tataḥ sa rathināṃ śreṣṭho rathenaikena varmabhṛt ||
jagāmānumate mātuḥ purīṃ vārāṇasīṃ prati ||
tatra rājñaḥ samuditān sarvataḥ samupāgatān ||
dadarśa kanyās tāś caiva bhīṣmaḥ śaṃtanunandanaḥ ||
kīrtyamāneṣu rājñāṃ tu nāmasv atha sahasraśaḥ ||
bhīṣmaḥ svayaṃ tadā rājan varayām āsa tāḥ prabhuḥ ||
uvāca ca mahīpālān rājañ jaladaniḥsvanaḥ ||
ratham āropya tāḥ kanyā bhīṣmaḥ praharatāṃ varaḥ ||
āhūya dānaṃ kanyānāṃ guṇavadbhyaḥ smṛtaṃ budhaiḥ ||
alaṃkṛtya yathāśakti pradāya ca dhanāny api ||
prayacchanty apare kanyāṃ mithunena gavām api ||
vittena kathitenānye balenānye 'numānya ca ||
pramattām upayānty anye svayam anye ca vindate ||
aṣṭamaṃ tam atho vitta vivāhaṃ kavibhiḥ smṛtam ||
svayaṃvaraṃ tu rājanyāḥ praśaṃsanty upayānti ca ||
pramathya tu hṛtām āhur jyāyasīṃ dharmavādinaḥ ||
tā imāḥ pṛthivīpālā jihīrṣāmi balād itaḥ ||
te yatadhvaṃ paraṃ śaktyā vijayāyetarāya vā ||
sthito 'haṃ pṛthivīpālā yuddhāya kṛtaniścayaḥ ||
"And now Bhishma heard, O king, that the three daughters of the king of Kashi, resembling apsarases, were together choosing a husband at a svayamvara. Then that best of chariot-warriors, clad in armor, on a single chariot, with his mother's permission, set out for the city of Varanasi. There Bhishma, the delight of Shantanu, saw the kings who had gathered from all sides and those maidens. And when the names of the kings were proclaimed by the thousand, Bhishma himself then, O king, as their lord, chose those maidens. And Bhishma, best of smiters, having raised those maidens onto his chariot, spoke to the kings in a voice like the thunder of a cloud: 'Summoning a worthy man and bestowing gifts, giving a maiden to worthy suitors, adorning her according to one's means and giving wealth along with her -- thus it has been established by the wise. Some give a maiden in exchange for a pair of cows; others for an agreed price; some by force; others by the maiden's own consent. Some take possession of a maiden who is careless; others take one who chooses for herself; now learn the eighth kind of marriage, established by the sages. Kshatriyas praise the svayamvara and resort to it; but knowers of dharma call the maiden seized by force the best choice for a kshatriya. These maidens, O kings, I wish to carry off by force from here; strive then with all your strength -- whether toward victory or some other outcome; I stand, O kings, firmly resolved on battle.'"
3dd06ae3e132 · publicado 12 jul 2026, 16:16:47 UTC
Disponible enRUENPasa de verso en verso con
Here Bhishma, openly and according to kshatriya custom, abducts the three princesses for his brother, having first proclaimed the kinds of marriage. It is telling that he does not steal them in secret but announces his intention aloud and challenges the kings to battle: even this abduction he carries out according to the dharma of the warrior, honestly and openly, giving his rivals an equal chance. Here it is shown that for a kshatriya, valor and honor are inseparable: marriage by force was honored only when carried out in open battle, not by treachery. Telling too is the listing of the eight kinds of marriage: the scripture does not hide that customs varied -- from the sacred gift of a daughter to a worthy man, to abduction -- and weighs them by the dharma of each estate. Here it is shown that dharma is proportioned to one's station: what is valorous for a warrior is improper for a brahmin; the law is not one and the same for all in its particulars, though it is one in its foundation. And yet let us note a shadow: this deed, valorous by custom, will turn to grief for the eldest princess, Amba, whose heart had already been given to another -- so even an honest act, one that does not take another's heart into account, prepares misfortune. Thus the scripture shows both Bhishma's valor and the seed of the coming tragedy.