Shloka 10
शास्त्र यदि भवेदेकं श्रेयो व्यक्ते भवेत् तदा । शास्त्रैश्व बहुभिर्भूय: श्रेयो गुहां प्रवेशितम्,“यदि शास्त्र एक होता तो श्रेयकी प्राप्तिका उपाय भी एक ही होनेके कारण वह स्पष्टरूपसे समझमें आ जाता, परंतु बहुत-से शास्त्रोंने नाना प्रकारसे वर्णन करके श्रेयको गुहा अवस्थामें पहुँचा दिया है--उसे अत्यन्त गूढ़ बना डाला है
śāstra yadi bhaved ekaṃ śreyo vyakte bhavet tadā | śāstraiś ca bahubhir bhūyaḥ śreyo guhāṃ praveśitam ||
Bhīṣma said: “If there were only a single authoritative teaching, then the path to the highest good would stand out clearly. But because many śāstras speak in many different ways, that very highest good has been pushed into a cave—made exceedingly hidden and difficult to discern.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhīṣma highlights a problem of plurality: when many śāstras present differing formulations, the seeker may find the highest good (śreyas) harder to identify. The verse urges discernment—separating the essential aim from competing presentations.
In Śānti Parva, Bhīṣma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on dharma and the means to true welfare. Here he remarks that the abundance of scriptural teachings can obscure rather than clarify the path, making śreyas seem hidden like something placed in a cave.