Shloka 10
Śreyas-nirdeśa (Discerning the Superior Good): Nārada–Gālava Saṃvāda
यदाहमेव जानामि न मृत्युस्तिष्ठतीति ह । सोऊहं कथं प्रतीक्षिष्ये ज्ञानेनापिहितश्षरन्,जब मैं यह अच्छी तरह जानता हूँ कि मौत मेरे कहनेसे क्षणभर भी रुक नहीं सकती और मैं ज्ञानरूपी कवचसे अपनेको बिना ढके हुए ही विचर रहा हूँ, तब यह समझकर भी मैं अपने कल्याणसाधनमें एक क्षणकी भी प्रतीक्षा कैसे करूँगा?
yad aham eva jānāmi na mṛtyus tiṣṭhatīti ha | so 'haṁ kathaṁ pratīkṣiṣye jñānenāpihitaḥ śaran ||
Bhīṣma said: “Since I know for certain that Death does not stand still—does not pause at anyone’s bidding—how could I delay even for a moment in pursuing my own highest good, when I am moving about unprotected, not covered by the armor of true knowledge?”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Death does not pause for anyone; therefore one should not postpone one’s spiritual welfare. The verse urges immediate effort toward the highest good, especially the acquisition of true knowledge as one’s protection.
In Śānti Parva, Bhīṣma instructs on dharma and the path of well-being. Here he emphasizes the urgency of practice: knowing mortality is relentless, he rejects delay in undertaking what leads to lasting good.