Shloka 69
श्रेयो-धर्मकर्मविचारः
Inquiry into Śreyas, Dharma, and Karma
भीष्म उवाच शुद्धाभिजनसम्पन्ना: पाण्डवा: संशितव्रता: । विह्वृत्य देवलोकेषु पुनर्मानुषमेष्यथ,भीष्मजीने कहा--युधिष्ठिर! तुम सभी पाण्डव विशुद्ध कुलसे सम्पन्न और तीक्षण व्रतोंका भलीभाँति पालन करनेवाले हो; अतः देवताओंके लोकोंमें विहार करके पुनः मनुष्य-शरीरको ही प्राप्त करोगे
bhīṣma uvāca | śuddhābhijanasampannāḥ pāṇḍavāḥ saṃśitavratāḥ | vihṛtya devalokeṣu punar mānuṣam eṣyatha ||
Bhishma said: “O Pandavas, you are endowed with a pure and noble lineage and steadfast in well-honed vows. Therefore, after enjoying your sojourn in the worlds of the gods, you will return again to the human condition—taking up a human body once more.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even great merit and disciplined vows can lead to heavenly enjoyment, yet that reward is not necessarily final liberation; after the fruit of merit is experienced, one may return to human embodiment. The verse highlights the ethical power of vrata and purity of conduct, while also implying the impermanence of heavenly attainments.
Bhishma, instructing Yudhishthira and the Pandavas in the Shanti Parva, praises their noble purity and steadfast discipline and foretells their posthumous trajectory: they will dwell in divine realms for a time and then return again to human life.