Shloka 25
Kṣemadarśa–Kālakavṛkṣīya Saṃvāda: Counsel on Impermanence, Non-attachment, and Composure in Dispossession
राजोवाच यादच्छिकं सर्वमासीत् तद् राज्यमिति चिन्तये । हियते सर्वमेवेदं कालेन महता द्विज
rājovāca yadṛcchikaṁ sarvam āsīt tad rājyam iti cintaye | hīyate sarvam evedaṁ kālena mahatā dvija ||
The king said: “I reflect that this entire kingship came to me merely by chance, without effort on my part. Now, O twice-born one, mighty Time has taken all of it away; indeed everything here is diminished and lost under the power of Time.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Worldly power and possessions are unstable: what seems to come effortlessly can be taken away by Kāla (Time). The verse encourages humility about fortune and detachment from kingship, recognizing Time as the great equalizer.
A king speaks to a Brahmin, reflecting on his past sovereignty as something gained ‘by chance’ and lamenting that mighty Time has now stripped it away. Bhīṣma reports this speech as part of his Shanti Parva instruction on the nature of rule, loss, and the power of Time.