Shloka 16
Sanatsujāta-Āhvāna (Summoning Sanatsujāta) — Vidura’s Invocation and Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s Doubt
स क्रोधलो भौ मोहवानन्तरात्मा स वै मृत्युस्त्वच्छरीरे य एष: । एवं मृत्युं जायमानं विदित्वा ज्ञाने तिष्ठन् न बिभेतीह मृत्यो: । विनश्यते विषये तस्य मृत्यु- मृत्योर्यथा विषयं प्राप्य मर्त्य:
sa krodha-lobhau mohavān antarātmā sa vai mṛtyus tvac-charīre ya eṣaḥ | evaṃ mṛtyuṃ jāyamānaṃ viditvā jñāne tiṣṭhan na bibhetīha mṛtyoḥ | vinaśyate viṣaye tasya mṛtyur mṛtyor yathā viṣayaṃ prāpya martyaḥ ||
Dieses innere Selbst in deinem Körper wird, wenn es von Verblendung überwältigt ist, zu Zorn und Gier—ja, es wird zur Todesmacht selbst. Wer so erkennt, dass der Tod aus Verblendung geboren wird, und fest im wahren Wissen steht, fürchtet in dieser Welt den Tod nicht. Denn der Tod, wenn er einem solchen Menschen nahekommt, wird vernichtet—so wie ein Sterblicher zugrunde geht, wenn er in den Bereich des Todes gerät.
सनत्युजात उवाच
Educational Q&A
Death is not merely an external event; it is 'born' inwardly when the inner self is seized by delusion, manifesting as anger and greed. One established in liberating knowledge sees through this delusion and therefore becomes fearless; for such a person, death loses its power.
In the Sanatsujātīya section of the Udyoga Parva, Sanatsujāta instructs (in response to Dhṛtarāṣṭra’s anxiety) on the nature of death and fear. Here he explains that delusion generates the inner conditions that make death effective, while steadfast knowledge nullifies death’s dominion.