Shloka 8
तुलाधार-उपदेशः
Tulādhāra’s Instruction to Jājali on Ahiṃsā and Abhaya-dāna
अप्रतीघातिता चैव भूतत्वं विकृतानि च । गुणा: पज्चाशतं प्रोक्ता: पज्चभूतात्मभाविता:,शब्द, व्यापकता, छिद्र होना, किसी स्थूल पदार्थका आश्रय न होना, स्वयं किसी दूसरे आधारपर न रहना, अव्यक्तता, निर्विकारता, प्रतिघातशून्यता और भूतता अर्थात् श्रवणेन्द्रियका कारण होना और विकृतिसे युक्त होना--से सब आकाशके गुण हैं। इस प्रकार पठचमहाभूतोंके ये पचास गुण बताये गये हैं
aprātighātitā caiva bhūtatvaṁ vikṛtāni ca | guṇāḥ pañcāśataṁ proktāḥ pañcabhūtātmabhāvitāḥ ||
Bhishma said: “Non-obstructability, the status of being a ‘bhūta’ (an elemental principle), and the modifications (that arise from it) are also to be counted. Thus, fifty qualities are declared—qualities grounded in the nature of the five great elements.” In context, Bhishma is systematizing how the cosmos and embodied experience are analyzed through elemental properties, guiding the listener toward discernment (viveka) rather than attachment to sensory appearances.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames a systematic enumeration of elemental qualities: the world of experience can be analyzed as properties (guṇas) rooted in the five great elements, including features like non-obstructability, elemental causality (bhūtatva), and their transformations (vikṛtis). This supports discernment about what is fundamental versus derivative in embodied life.
In Shanti Parva’s instruction section, Bhishma continues his philosophical exposition to Yudhishthira, classifying reality through the five elements and their attributes, as part of a broader ethical-spiritual program aimed at inner clarity and liberation-oriented understanding.