Shloka 13
Adhyāya 177: Pañca-mahābhūta-vicāra and Vṛkṣa-jīva-lakṣaṇa
Five Elements Inquiry and the Status of Plant Life
त॑ वै सदा कामचरमनुपस्तीर्णशायिनम् । बाहूपधान शाम्यन्तं प्रशंसन्ति दिवौकस:,“वह सदा दैव-इच्छाके अनुसार विचरता है। बिना बिछौनेके भूतलपर सोता है। बाँहोंकी ही तकिया लगाता है और सदा शान्तभावसे रहता है। देवतालोग भी उसकी भूरि- भूरि प्रशंसा करते हैं
taṁ vai sadā kāmacaram anupastīrṇaśāyinam | bāhūpadhānaṁ śāmyantaṁ praśaṁsanti divaukasaḥ ||
“He ever moves as he wills (in accord with the divine order), sleeps upon the bare ground without any spread, uses his own arms as a pillow, and remains continually tranquil. The dwellers of heaven, too, praise him again and again.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse extols a dharmic ideal of simplicity and inner mastery: one who is content with minimal comforts, remains calm, and moves in harmony with higher order is worthy of praise—even by the gods. Ethical excellence is shown through restraint, non-dependence on luxuries, and steady tranquility.
Bhishma, in his Shanti Parva instruction, describes a virtuous person whose austere lifestyle and serene disposition mark him as exemplary. The description functions as a model of conduct within Bhishma’s broader discourse on dharma and right living after the war.