Shloka 8
Jñāna-plava (The Raft of Knowledge): Svabhāva, Prajñā, and the Ascent to Ātmajñāna
निन्दत्सु च समा नित्यं प्रशंसत्सु च देवल । निद्ववन्ति च ये तेषां समयं सुकृतं च यत्
nindatsu ca samā nityaṁ praśaṁsatsu ca devala | nindavanti ca ye teṣāṁ samayaṁ sukṛtaṁ ca yat ||
Jaigiṣavya said: “O Devala, whether people censure the great-souled or continually praise them, or even try to obscure their good conduct and meritorious deeds, such noble persons maintain an equal, undisturbed understanding toward all.”
जैगीषव्य उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches sama-buddhi (equanimity): a truly noble person remains inwardly even-minded whether praised or blamed, and is not shaken even when others attempt to conceal or diminish their virtue and merit.
In Śānti Parva, Jaigiṣavya instructs the sage Devala on ethical and spiritual steadiness, describing the hallmark of great-souled people as impartiality of mind amid social reactions like praise, censure, and misrepresentation.