Shloka 29
अध्याय १७८ — प्राणवायुगतिः तथा शारीराग्निव्यवस्था
Adhyāya 178 — The courses of prāṇa-vāyu and the regulation of the bodily fire
य इमं मामकं देहं भूतग्राम: समाश्रितः । स यात्वितो यथाकामं वसतां वा यथासुखम्
ya imaṁ māmakaṁ dehaṁ bhūtagrāmaḥ samāśritaḥ | sa yātv ito yathākāmaṁ vasatāṁ vā yathāsukham ||
Bhishma said: “As for this body of mine—upon which the aggregate of the elements has taken shelter—let that elemental host depart from it as it pleases, or let it remain here in comfort as it likes. I am indifferent to it.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches vairāgya (detachment): the body is merely a temporary assemblage of the elements, and the wise do not cling to it. Whether the elemental constituents remain or disperse (life continuing or ending), one should maintain equanimity and freedom from possessiveness.
In the Śānti Parva, Bhishma—lying on the bed of arrows and instructing Yudhishthira—expresses his dispassion toward his own bodily condition. He frames the body as a ‘bhūtagrāma’ (elemental aggregate) and declares that its staying or departing is of no concern to him.