Shloka 15
बीजमात्र पुरा सृष्टं यदेतत् परिवर्तते । मृतामृता: प्रणश्यन्ति बीजाद् बीजं प्रवर्तते,पूर्वकालमें बीजमात्रकी सृष्टि हुई थी, जिससे यह जगत् चलता आ रहा है। जो लोग मर जाते हैं, वे तो नष्ट हो जाते हैं और बीजसे बीज पैदा होता रहता है
bījamātraṃ purā sṛṣṭaṃ yad etat parivartate | mṛtāmṛtāḥ praṇaśyanti bījād bījaṃ pravartate ||
In the beginning, only the seed-principle was created; from that this world continues to revolve and renew itself. Those who die are indeed destroyed as individuals, yet from seed, seed keeps arising again.
भरद्वाज उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse emphasizes cyclical causality: individual beings perish, but the generative principle (bīja) persists, producing continuity through repeated origination. It highlights impermanence at the personal level alongside ongoing reproduction/renewal at the cosmic or natural level.
In the didactic discourse of the Śānti Parva, Bharadvāja presents a philosophical explanation of how the world continues: creation begins from a seed-like causal principle, and although living beings die, the chain of generation continues as seed gives rise to seed.