Shloka 14
Khaḍgotpattiḥ (Origin and Dharmic Function of the Sword) | खड्गोत्पत्तिः
प्रत्यक्ष तु कुरुश्रेष्ठ त्यज लोभमिहात्मना । त्यक्त्वा लोभ॑ सुखं लोके प्रेत्य चानुचरिष्यसि,कुरुश्रेष्ठ! तुम स्वयं प्रयत्न करके इस प्रत्यक्ष दीखने वाले लोभका परित्याग करो। लोभका त्याग कर इस लोकमें सुख तथा मृत्युके पश्चात् परलोकमें भी आनन्द प्राप्त करके सुखपूर्वक विचरोगे
pratyakṣaṃ tu kuruśreṣṭha tyaja lobham ihātmanā | tyaktvā lobhaṃ sukhaṃ loke pretya cānucariṣyasi ||
Bhīṣma says: “O best of the Kurus, by your own deliberate effort abandon this greed that is directly visible here and now. Having renounced greed, you will enjoy happiness in this world, and after death as well; you will move through life and beyond with well-being.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Greed is a plainly observable source of suffering and moral downfall; therefore one should renounce it through one’s own conscious effort. Such renunciation yields well-being both in this life (social harmony, inner peace) and in the post-death state (favorable spiritual outcome).
In Śānti Parva, Bhīṣma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on dharma and right conduct after the war. Here he gives direct ethical counsel: abandon greed, because its consequences are visible in the present and it obstructs lasting happiness in both worldly and otherworldly terms.