Shloka 15
त्रिवर्गविचारः
Tri-varga Deliberation: Dharma, Artha, Kāma
क्षमा धृतिरहिंसा च समता सत्यमार्जवम् | इन्द्रियाभिजयो दाक्ष्यं मार्दव॑ हवीरचापलम्
kṣamā dhṛtir ahiṃsā ca samatā satyam ārjavam | indriyābhijayo dākṣyaṃ mārdavaṃ hrīr acāpalam ||
قال بهيشما: «الحِلمُ، والثباتُ، واللاّعنفُ (أهِمْسا ahiṃsā)، وتساوي النفس، والصدقُ والاستقامة؛ وقهرُ الحواسّ، والكفاءةُ، واللِّينُ، والحياءُ، والتحرّرُ من التقلّب—إذا نهضت هذه الفضائلُ في المرء واستقرّت فيه، فذلك هو ما يُسمّى دَمَا (dama): ضبطَ النفس.»
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhīṣma defines dama (self-restraint) not as mere suppression but as the stable emergence of a cluster of virtues—patience, firmness, non-violence, equanimity, truth, straightforwardness, sensory mastery, competence, gentleness, modesty, and steadiness—showing that ethical character and inner discipline are inseparable.
In the Śānti Parva’s instruction on dharma after the war, Bhīṣma teaches Yudhiṣṭhira about moral and spiritual discipline. Here he enumerates the qualities that constitute dama, presenting a practical ethical profile of a self-controlled person.