Shloka 42
अव्यक्तकालमान-निर्णयः
Measures of Time from the Unmanifest; Creation, Elements, and the Primacy of Mind
हंस उवाच प्राज्ञ एको रमते ब्राह्मणानां प्राज्श्षैको बहुभिजोंषमास्ते । प्राज्ष एको बलवान दुर्बलोडपि प्राज्ञ एषां कलहं नान्ववैति
haṃsa uvāca | prājña eko ramate brāhmaṇānāṃ prājñaḥ eko bahubhiḥ joṣam āste | prājña eko balavān durbalo 'pi prājña eṣāṃ kalahaṃ nānuvaiti ||
The Haṃsa said: Among Brahmins, it is the wise person alone who truly delights—who tastes the highest contentment. The wise one, even while living among many, remains quiet and self-contained. The wise one alone is strong even when outwardly weak; and among these people, it is the wise person who does not enter into quarrel.
हंस उवाच
Educational Q&A
True strength and happiness belong to the prājña (the discerning wise person): they remain inwardly steady, practice silence amid crowds, and avoid quarrels—showing that ethical restraint and self-mastery outweigh external power.
Haṃsa, speaking as a teacher-figure in the Śānti Parva’s reflective discourse, describes the distinguishing marks of a truly wise Brahmin: contentment, quietude among many, inner strength despite outward weakness, and non-participation in conflict.