Shloka 13
अर्थसिद्धिमनर्थ च जीवितं मरणं तथा । सुखदुःखफले चैव न द्वेष्मि न च कामये,मैं न तो अर्थसिद्धि, जीवन और सुखमय फलकी कामना करता हूँ और न अनर्थ, मृत्यु एवं दुःखमय फलसे द्वेष ही रखता हूँ
artha-siddhim anarthaṃ ca jīvitaṃ maraṇaṃ tathā | sukha-duḥkha-phale caiva na dveṣmi na ca kāmaye ||
Śakra said: “I neither crave success and prosperity, nor do I harbor aversion toward misfortune; likewise, I neither long for life nor recoil from death. In the same way, I neither desire the fruits that are pleasant nor hate those that are painful.”
श॒क्र उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches equanimity: a disciplined mind does not cling to favorable outcomes (success, life, pleasure) nor hate unfavorable ones (misfortune, death, pain). Such neutrality toward the fruits of experience supports dharma and inner freedom.
In the Śānti Parva’s instruction-oriented setting, Śakra (Indra) speaks in a didactic tone, presenting an ideal stance of self-control and non-attachment—framing how a wise person should relate to fortune and adversity.