Shloka 7
Bhūta-guṇa-saṃkhyāna
Enumeration of the Properties of the Elements and Cognitive Faculties
कदाचिल्लभते प्रीतिं कदाचिदपि शोचति । न सुखेन न दुःखेन कदाचिदिह युज्यते
kadācillabhate prītiṁ kadācid api śocati | na sukhena na duḥkhena kadācid iha yujyate |
Vyāsa said: At times it attains affection and gladness; at times it sinks into grief. And at times, here in this world, it is joined with neither pleasure nor pain—remaining in a state of dull obscuration. The verse points to the mind’s shifting dispositions (sattva, rajas, tamas) and urges discernment rather than blind identification with these passing states.
व्यास उवाच
Educational Q&A
The mind (or inner disposition) does not remain fixed: it alternates between joy/affection, grief, and a third condition where neither pleasure nor pain is felt due to dullness or delusion. Recognizing these as guṇa-driven fluctuations supports ethical steadiness and non-identification with transient moods.
In Śānti Parva’s instruction-oriented setting, Vyāsa delivers a reflective teaching: he describes how inner experience shifts across different qualities (sattva, rajas, tamas), framing emotional change as a natural pattern to be understood and transcended through discernment.