Shloka 40
भीष्मविक्रमदर्शनं तथा क्रौञ्चारुणव्यूहविधानम् | Bhīṣma’s Ascendancy and the Organization of the Krauñcāruṇa Formation
न तदस्ति पृथिव्यां वा दिवि देवेषु वा पुन: । सत्त्वं प्रकृतिजैर्मुक्ते यदेभि: स्यात् त्रिभिर्गुणै:
na tad asti pṛthivyāṃ vā divi deveṣu vā punaḥ | sattvaṃ prakṛtijair muktaṃ yad ebhiḥ syāt tribhir guṇaiḥ ||
Es gibt nichts irgendwo—weder auf Erden noch im Himmel, ja nicht einmal unter den Göttern—das frei bestünde von diesen drei, aus der Natur geborenen Qualitäten. Alle Wesen, wo immer sie sich finden, werden unausweichlich von den drei Strängen der Guṇas geformt und gebunden.
अजुन उवाच
Educational Q&A
No being—human, celestial, or divine—is completely beyond the three guṇas arising from prakṛti. This frames ethical self-understanding: conduct and tendencies are conditioned by nature’s qualities, so discernment and discipline are needed to rise above their pull.
In Bhīṣma Parva’s philosophical instruction context, Arjuna speaks to emphasize the universality of prakṛti’s three guṇas, asserting that all realms of existence are governed by them and none is entirely untouched by their influence.