Shloka 9
दान-धर्म-आश्रमविधानम्
Dana, Dharma, and the Four Āśramas
पुरा स्तिमितमाकाशमनन्तमचलोपमम् । नष्टचन्द्रार्कपवनं प्रसुप्तमिव सम्बभौ,वह आकाशवाणी इस प्रकार है--'पूर्वकालमें अनन्त आकाश पर्वतके समान निश्चल था। उसमें चन्द्रमा, सूर्य अथवा वायु किसीके दर्शन नहीं होते थे। वह सोया हुआ-सा जान पड़ता था
bharadvāja uvāca | purā stimitam ākāśam anantam acalopamam | naṣṭacandrārkapavanaṁ prasuptam iva sambabhau |
“In ancient times the boundless sky stood utterly still, like an unmoving mountain. No moon, no sun, and no wind were to be seen within it; it appeared as though it were asleep.”
भरद्वाज उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames a cosmogonic reflection: before the manifest world-order (sun, moon, wind, time-markers), reality is depicted as silent and unagitated. Ethically, it supports the Shanti Parva’s broader movement toward inner stillness and discernment—suggesting that turbulence and activity are later manifestations, while calmness is a primordial ground for understanding dharma.
Bharadvāja begins a description of an early, pre-manifest state of the cosmos. He portrays the sky as motionless and ‘asleep,’ with celestial bodies and wind not yet appearing—setting the stage for an account of how differentiation and the ordered world arise.