Shloka 19
Prahlāda–Indra Saṃvāda: Kartṛtva (Agency) and Svabhāva (Nature) in the Causation of Karma
निगृहीतेन्द्रियस्यास्य कुर्वाणस्य मनो वशे । देवतास्तत् प्रकाशन्ते हृष्टा यान्ति तमीश्वरम्,इस प्रकार जिसने इन्द्रियोंको वशमें करके मनको अपने अधीन कर लिया है, उस अवस्थामें उसकी इन्द्रियोंके अधिष्ठातृदेवता प्रसन्नतासे प्रकाशित होने लगते हैं; और ईश्वरकी ओर प्रवृत्त हो जाते हैं
nigṛhītendriyasya asya kurvāṇasya mano vaśe | devatās tat prakāśante hṛṣṭā yānti tam īśvaram ||
Bhīṣma said: When a person has restrained the senses and brought the mind under control, the deities who preside over those senses become radiant with joy; pleased, they turn that person’s course toward the Lord. The ethical point is that inner discipline is not mere suppression but a harmonizing of the faculties, so that one’s powers naturally align with the highest good.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Mastery over the senses and mind leads to inner clarity and alignment with the divine; when the faculties are disciplined, the powers associated with them become supportive rather than distracting, and one’s life naturally turns toward Īśvara.
In the Śānti Parva’s instruction on dharma and spiritual practice, Bhīṣma explains to Yudhiṣṭhira that a disciplined practitioner—who restrains the senses and governs the mind—experiences a favorable transformation: the presiding deities of the senses ‘shine’ and become pleased, inclining the person toward the Lord.