Shloka 4
ध्यानयोगवर्णनम्
Description of the Path of Meditation
नश्यतीत्येव जानामि शान्तमग्निमनिन्धनम् | गतिर्यस्य प्रमाणं वा संस्थान वा न विद्यते,अतः मैं ईंधनरहित बुझी हुई आगको यही समझता हूँ कि वह नष्ट हो गयी; क्योंकि जिसकी गति, प्रमाण अथवा स्थिति नहीं है, उसका नाश भी मानना पड़ता है। यही दशा जीवकी भी है
naśyatīty eva jānāmi śāntam agnim anindhanam | gatir yasya pramāṇaṃ vā saṃsthānaṃ vā na vidyate ||
ভরদ্বাজ বললেন—ইন্ধনহীন, নিভে যাওয়া অগ্নিকে আমি নষ্টই মনে করি; কারণ যার গতি নেই, পরিমাপ নেই, কোনো নির্দিষ্ট অবস্থা নেই—তার বিনাশই মানতে হয়। জীবের অবস্থাও তেমনই।
भरद्वाज उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bharadvāja argues from a perceptual-empirical standpoint: when something’s motion, measurable extent, and form are no longer apprehended—like a fuel-less extinguished fire—it is taken as destroyed; he applies this analogy to claim that the jīva too should be considered annihilated when its observable marks are absent.
In the Śānti Parva’s philosophical dialogue, Bharadvāja presents a reasoning-based position using the example of an extinguished fire to support the view that the living being ceases when its perceptible indicators cannot be found.