Shloka 11
अध्याय १७८ — प्राणवायुगतिः तथा शारीराग्निव्यवस्था
Adhyāya 178 — The courses of prāṇa-vāyu and the regulation of the bodily fire
उद्यम्योद्यम्य मे दम्यौ विषमेणैव गच्छत: । उत्क्षिप्प काकतालीयमुत्पथेनैव धावत:
udyamyodyamya me damyau viṣameṇaiva gacchataḥ | utkṣipya kākātālīyam utpathenaiva dhāvataḥ ||
Bhishma said: “This camel, jolting my two dear calves again and again, is moving only by a rough and uneven track. By sheer chance—like the ‘crow-and-palm’ coincidence—it has hoisted them up on its neck and is racing along a bad road. My beloved calves hang from its throat like a pair of gems. This is nothing but the play of fate. What, after all, is achieved by stubborn, forceful exertion alone?”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the tension between daiva (fate) and puruṣārtha (human effort): events may unfold through sheer coincidence and uncontrollable forces, so one should not assume that stubborn exertion alone guarantees outcomes; wisdom lies in recognizing limits and cultivating equanimity.
Bhishma uses a vivid image: a camel rushes along a harsh, wrong path while two young calves hang from its neck like jewels—an accidental, ‘kākātālīya’ occurrence. The scene becomes an illustration that some situations arise from chance/fate rather than deliberate planning.