Shloka 11
Yoga, Nārāyaṇa as Supreme Principle, and the Emanation of Categories
Sāṅkhya-Yoga Outline
न हि खल्वनुपायेन कश्रिदर्थोडभिसिद्धाति । सूत्रजालैर्यथा मत्स्यान् बध्नन्ति जलजीविन:,उचित उपाय किये बिना कोई भी प्रयोजन सिद्ध नहीं होता है, जैसे जलमें रहनेवाले प्राणियोंसे जीविका चलानेवाले सूतके जाल बनाकर उनके द्वारा मछलियोंको बाँध लेते हैं, जैसे मृगोंके द्वारा मृगोंको, पक्षियोंद्वारा पक्षियोंको और हाथियोंद्वारा हाथियोंको पकड़ा जाता है, उसी प्रकार ज्ञेय वस्तुका ज्ञानके द्वारा ग्रहण होता है
na hi khalv anupāyena kaścid artho ’bhisidhyati | sūtrajālair yathā matsyān badhnanti jalajīvinaḥ ||
Bhishma said: No aim is ever accomplished without a proper means. Just as those who make their living from creatures of the water catch fish by casting nets of thread, so too every knowable thing is grasped only through the appropriate instrument—knowledge—applied in the right way.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhishma teaches that success depends on upāya—an appropriate means or method. Goals are not reached by mere desire; one must apply the right instrument to the task, and in matters of understanding, that instrument is disciplined knowledge.
In the Shanti Parva’s instruction to Yudhishthira, Bhishma continues his didactic discourse on right conduct and effective action. Here he uses a concrete analogy—fish caught by thread-nets—to illustrate that every result requires a suitable method, and that knowing is achieved through the proper means of knowledge.