Shloka 4
Adhyāya 214: Tapas Redefined—Perpetual Discipline, Hospitality, and the Ethics of Eating (तपः-निरूपणम्, विघसाशी-अतिथिप्रिय-धर्मः)
नेत्रहीनो यथा होक: कृच्छाणि लभते<ध्वनि । ज्ञानहीनस्तथा लोके तस्माज्ज्ञानविदोडधिका:
netrahīno yathā loke kṛcchrāṇi labhate dhvani | jñānahīnas tathā loke tasmāj jñānavidho 'dhikāḥ ||
যেমন চোখহীন মানুষ পথে একা চলতে গিয়ে নানাবিধ কষ্ট ভোগ করে, তেমনি এই জগতে জ্ঞানহীন মানুষও বহু প্রকার দুঃখ সহ্য করে; অতএব জ্ঞানী—বিদ্বান—পুরুষই সর্বশ্রেষ্ঠ।
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Ignorance is like blindness: it makes one vulnerable to repeated hardship. Knowledge (jñāna) is presented as the highest aid for right living, hence the wise are called the foremost.
In the Śānti Parva’s instruction section, Bhīṣma continues advising on right conduct and the foundations of well-being, using a simple analogy (blind traveler) to stress the practical necessity of knowledge.