Adhyāya 272: Vṛtrasya Dharmiṣṭhatā, Indrasya Mohaḥ, Vasiṣṭha-upadeśaḥ
Vṛtra’s dharmic stature; Indra’s disorientation; Vasiṣṭha’s counsel
इति श्रीमहाभारते शान्तिपर्वणि मोक्षधर्मपर्वणि चतु:प्राश्निको नाम त्रिसप्तत्यधिकद्धिशततमो<5 ध्याय:,इस प्रकार श्रीमहाभारत शान्तिपर्वके अन्तर्गत मोक्षधर्मपर्वमें चार प्रश्न और उनका उत्तर नामक दो सौ तिहतत्तरवाँ अध्याय पूरा हुआ
iti śrīmahābhārate śāntiparvaṇi mokṣadharmaparvaṇi catuḥpraśniko nāma trisaptatyadhikadviśatatamo 'dhyāyaḥ
Thus, in the Śrī Mahābhārata, within the Śānti Parva and specifically the Mokṣa-dharma section, the two-hundred-and-seventy-third chapter—called “The Four Questions (and their Answers)”—comes to an end. This closing colophon signals the completion of a teaching episode framed as Bhīṣma’s instruction on liberation-oriented dharma.
भीष्म उवाच
This verse is a colophon rather than a doctrinal statement: it marks the completion of a Mokṣa-dharma teaching unit titled “Four Questions (and their Answers),” situating the instruction within Bhīṣma’s broader guidance on dharma oriented toward liberation.
The text formally closes the chapter: the narrator/editorial voice indicates that, within the Śānti Parva’s Mokṣa-dharma section, the 273rd chapter named “Catuḥpraśnika” has ended—signaling a transition to the next unit of Bhīṣma’s discourse.