Shloka 26
दैव–पुरुषकार-प्रश्नः
Daiva–Puruṣakāra Inquiry: Fate and Human Effort
कथं तस्य समुत्पत्तिर्यतो दैवं प्रवर्तते । एवं त्रिदशलोके<पि प्राप्यन्ते बहवो गुणा:,दैवके बिना पुरुषार्थकी उत्पत्ति कैसे हो सकती है? क्योंकि प्रवृत्तिका मूल कारण दैव ही है (जिन्होंने पूर्वजन्ममें पुण्यकर्म किये हैं, वे ही दूसरे जन्ममें भी पूर्वसंस्कारवश पुण्यमें प्रवृत्त होते हैं। यदि ऐसा न हो तो सभी पुण्यकर्मोंमें ही लग जायँ)। देवलोकमें भी दैववश ही बहुत-से गुण (सुखद साधन) उपलब्ध होते हैं
kathaṁ tasya samutpattir yato daivaṁ pravartate | evaṁ tridaśa-loke ’pi prāpyante bahavo guṇāḥ ||
Bhīṣma sprach: „Wie könnte menschliches Bemühen unabhängig entstehen, wenn doch das Schicksal das Handeln in Gang setzt? Ebenso werden selbst in der Welt der Götter viele Vorzüge und Vollkommenheiten durch das Schicksal erlangt.“
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhishma emphasizes the primacy of daiva—destiny shaped by prior karma—as the underlying driver of action and attainment; even what appears as personal initiative or heavenly advantage is conditioned by past merit and circumstance.
In the Anushasana Parva’s instruction setting, Bhishma continues his ethical discourse by arguing that outcomes and even the impulse toward virtuous action are propelled by daiva, illustrating this with the example that even in heaven many endowments are gained through destiny.