Shloka 23
Durgātitaraṇa—Conduct for Crossing Difficulties (दुर्गातितरणम्)
यात्रार्थ भोजन येषां संतानार्थ च मैथुनम् । वाक् सत्यवचनार्थाय दुर्गाण्यतितरन्ति ते,जिनका भोजन स्वादके लिये नहीं, जीवनयात्राका निर्वाह करनेके लिये होता है, जो विषयवासनाकी तृप्तिके लिये नहीं, संतानकी इच्छासे मैथुनमें प्रवृत्त होते हैं तथा जिनकी वाणी केवल सत्य बोलनेके लिये है, वे समस्त संकटोंसे पार हो जाते हैं
yātrārtha-bhojanaṁ yeṣāṁ santānārthaṁ ca maithunam | vāk satya-vacanārthāya durgāṇy atitaranti te ||
Bhishma said: Those whose eating is only for sustaining life’s journey (not for taste), whose sexual union is undertaken for the sake of progeny (not for indulgence), and whose speech is meant solely for speaking truth—such people cross over even the hardest crises and obstacles.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Moderation and restraint in bodily appetites (food and sex) together with unwavering truthfulness in speech form a practical dharmic discipline; such a life equips a person to overcome severe difficulties.
In Shanti Parva, Bhishma instructs Yudhishthira on dharma and right conduct. Here he summarizes a rule of disciplined living—eat to live, engage in sexuality with the aim of progeny, and speak only truth—stating that such people pass safely through crises.