Shloka 9
Vimokṣa-niścaya: Pañcaśikha’s Analysis of Aggregates, Guṇas, and Tyāga (मोक्षनिर्णयः)
पञ्चभूतात्मके देहे सत्त्वे राजसतामसे । कमभिष्ट्वते चायं क॑ वा55क्रोशति कि वदन्,यह शरीर पाँच भूतोंका विकार है और सत्त्व, रज एवं तम--तीन गुणोंसे युक्त है। इसमें रहकर यह निर्विकार आत्मा क्या कहकर किसकी निन्दा और किसकी स्तुति करे
pañcabhūtātmake dehe sattve rajasatāmase | kim abhiṣṭuvate cāyaṃ ka vā krośati kiṃ vadan ||
Bhīṣma said: “This body is a modification of the five great elements and is conditioned by the three qualities—sattva, rajas, and tamas. Dwelling within it, what could the changeless Self meaningfully say—whom could it blame or praise, and on what grounds?”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhishma emphasizes that praise and blame belong to the realm of the body-mind shaped by the five elements and the three guṇas. The true Self (ātman), being changeless, is not the real agent of such reactions; recognizing this supports equanimity and ethical restraint.
In the Śānti Parva’s instruction to Yudhiṣṭhira, Bhishma continues a philosophical discourse on the nature of the Self versus the conditioned body. This verse argues for detachment from reactive judgment—praise and censure—by grounding identity in the avikāra ātman rather than in guṇa-driven states.