Shloka 51
Śama-prāptiḥ — Gautamī–Lubdhaka–Pannaga–Mṛtyu–Kāla-saṃvāda
Restraint through the Analysis of Karma and Time
यथा वायुर्जलधरान् विकर्षति ततस्तत: । तद्धज्जलदवत् सर्प कालस्याहं वशानुग:,सर्प! जैसे हवा बादलोंको इधर-उधर उड़ा ले जाती है, उन बादलोंकी ही भाँति मैं भी कालके वशमें हूँ
yathā vāyur jaladharān vikarṣati tatastataḥ | tadvaj jaladavat sarpa kālasyāhaṃ vaśānugaḥ ||
Bhīṣma said: “Just as the wind drives the rain-clouds this way and that, so too—like those clouds—I am carried along under the dominion of Time. I do not act in absolute independence; I move as Time impels.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse stresses human limitation before Kāla (Time): even great persons are propelled by forces beyond personal control. Ethically, it encourages humility and detachment—recognizing that outcomes are often governed by Time, not merely by individual will.
Bhīṣma, speaking in the Anuśāsana Parva, uses a vivid simile: as wind scatters clouds, so Time directs him. He frames his condition and actions as being under Kāla’s sway, setting a reflective tone for instruction on conduct and duty.