Shloka 14
प्रजाविसर्ग-तत्त्वनिर्णयः | Cosmogony of Elemental Emergence
Bharadvāja–Bhṛgu Dialogue
अद्यैव कुरु यच्छेयो मा त्वां कालो5त्यगादयम् । अकृतेष्वेव कार्येषु मृत्युर्वैं सम्प्रकर्षति,इसलिये जो कल्याणकारी कार्य हो, उसे आज ही कर डालिये। आपका यह समय हाथसे निकल न जाय; क्योंकि सारे काम अधूरे ही पड़े रह जायँगे और मौत आपको खींच ले जायगी
adyaiva kuru yac chreyo mā tvāṁ kālo 'tyagād ayam | akṛteṣv eva kāryeṣu mṛtyur vai samprakarṣati ||
Bhishma said: “Do today itself whatever is truly for your good. Do not let this present time slip past you; for while tasks still remain unfinished, death indeed drags a person away.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
One should not postpone what is truly beneficial (śreyaḥ). Time is uncertain, and death can seize a person while duties remain unfinished; therefore act promptly in accordance with dharma.
In the Shanti Parva’s instructional setting, Bhishma continues his counsel by urging immediate performance of welfare-producing duties, warning that Kāla (time) may slip away and Mṛtyu (death) may carry one off before one’s intended works are completed.