Shloka 48
मृत्यु-काल-प्रबोधनम् (Instruction on Mortality, Time, and Truth) — Mahābhārata, Śānti-parva 169
अवबुध्यात्मना55त्मानं सत्त्वं शीलं श्रुतं दमम् । अनुक्रोशं च संस्मृत्य त्यज वासमिमं द्विज,“अब भी तो अपने-आपको पहचान! तू द्विज है; अतः द्विजोचित सत्त्व, शील, शास्त्रज्ञान, संयम और दयाभावको याद करके अपने इस निवासस्थानको त्याग दे”
avabudhyātmanātmānaṃ sattvaṃ śīlaṃ śrutaṃ damam | anukrośaṃ ca saṃsmṛtya tyaja vāsam imaṃ dvija ||
Bhīṣma sprach: „Erwache durch innere Einsicht zu deinem wahren Selbst. Erinnere dich der Tugenden, die dem Zweimalgeborenen ziemen—standhafte Güte, edler Wandel, heiliges Wissen, Selbstzucht und Mitgefühl—und, ihrer eingedenk, verlasse diese Wohnstatt, o Brahmane.“
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhīṣma urges ethical self-recollection: true understanding of oneself should revive the virtues expected of a dvija—purity (sattva), good character (śīla), scriptural learning (śruta), restraint (dama), and compassion (anukrośa). With these restored, one should renounce an unworthy attachment—symbolized by ‘this dwelling’—and act in accordance with dharma.
In Śānti Parva’s instruction-setting, Bhīṣma addresses a dvija and admonishes him to ‘wake up’ to his real identity and obligations. The verse functions as a moral corrective: remembering one’s learned and vowed standards, the addressee is told to abandon the present residence—implying departure from a compromised situation or attachment inconsistent with dharmic conduct.