Shloka 240

Adhyāya 240: Indriya–Manas–Buddhi–Ātman — The Inner Hierarchy and Restraint (इन्द्रिय-मनस्-बुद्धि-आत्म-क्रमः)

Devanagari script

इति श्रीमहाभारते शान्तिपर्वणि मोक्षधर्मपर्वणि शुकानुप्रश्ने चत्वारिंशदधिकद्विशततमो< ध्याय:,इस प्रकार श्रीमहाभारत शान्तिपर्वके अन्तर्गत मौक्षधर्मपर्वमें शुकदेवका अनुप्रश्नविषयक दो सौ चालीसवाँ अध्याय पूरा हुआ

Transliteration

iti śrīmahābhārate śāntiparvaṇi mokṣadharmaparvaṇi śukānupraśne catvāriṃśad-adhika-dviśatatamo 'dhyāyaḥ

Translation

Thus, in the Śrī Mahābhārata, within the Śānti Parvan—specifically in the Mokṣa-dharma section—ends the two-hundred-and-fortieth chapter, concerning Śuka’s follow-up inquiry. (This is the colophon marking the close of the chapter.)

Word by Word

इतिthus; end-quote marker

श्रीमहाभारतेin the venerable Mahabharata

शान्तिपर्वणिin the Shanti Parva

मोक्षधर्मपर्वणिin the Mokshadharma section

शुकानुप्रश्नेin (the topic of) Shuka's follow-up question(s)

चत्वारिंशत्forty

अधिकadditional; over and above

द्विशततमःtwo-hundredth

अध्यायःchapter

Speaker

व्यास उवाच

Characters & Entities

Mahābhārata

Śānti Parvan

Mokṣa-dharma Parvan (Mokṣadharma)

Śuka

Vyāsa

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Cross References

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

This verse is not a doctrinal instruction but a colophon: it formally closes the chapter and situates it within the Śānti Parvan’s Mokṣa-dharma section, identifying the topic as Śuka’s follow-up inquiry.

What is happening in the narrative?

The narrator’s editorial closing formula marks that the discussion prompted by Śuka’s further questions has concluded for this chapter (Adhyāya 240), and the text transitions to the next unit.