Shloka 24
Haṃsa–Sādhya Saṃvāda: Satya, Dama, Kṣamā and the Discipline of Speech
एवं विजान् लोके5स्मिन् क: कस्येत्यभिनिश्चित: । मोक्षे निवेशय मनो भूयश्चाप्युपधारय
evaṁ vijān loke 'smin kaḥ kasyety abhiniścitaḥ | mokṣe niveśaya mano bhūyaś cāpy upadhāraya ||
Knowing thus, in this world no one can be decisively fixed as ‘belonging to’ anyone else—who is whose? Therefore, place your mind in liberation, and reflect on this again and again.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhīṣma teaches non-possessiveness: in worldly life, claims like “this person is mine” or “I belong to someone” cannot be ultimately established. Recognizing this, one should turn the mind toward mokṣa and repeatedly contemplate this truth to weaken attachment.
Bhīṣma, instructing in the Śānti Parva, urges the listener to adopt a reflective, renunciant outlook. He frames worldly relationships and ownership as unstable and inconclusive, and directs the listener to focus on liberation through repeated contemplation.