Shloka 31
Adhyātma–Adhibhūta–Adhidaivata Correspondences and the Triguṇa Lakṣaṇas (Śānti-parva 301)
गतिं चाप्यशुभां ज्ञात्वा नूपते पापकर्मिणाम् | वैतरण्यां च यद् दुःखं पतितानां यमक्षये,पृथ्वीनाथ! महान् कालकी प्रेरणासे मनुष्य ऐश्वर्यसे भ्रष्ट कर दिये जाते हैं। बड़े-बड़े जो भूत-समुदाय हैं, उनका भी कालके द्वारा नाश हो जाता है। यह सब देख-सुनकर पापकर्मी मनुष्योंको जो अशुभ गति प्राप्त होती है तथा यमलोकमें जाकर वैतरणी नदीमें गिरे हुए प्राणियोंको जो दुःख होता है, उसको भी जाने
gatiṁ cāpy aśubhāṁ jñātvā nṛpate pāpakarmiṇām | vaitaraṇyāṁ ca yad duḥkhaṁ patitānāṁ yamakṣaye pṛthvīnātha |
Bhishma said: “O king, having understood the inauspicious destiny that awaits those who commit sinful deeds, and also the suffering endured by fallen beings in Yama’s realm—especially the torment in the Vaitaraṇī river—one should become vigilant about one’s conduct.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhishma urges the king to recognize that sinful actions lead to an inauspicious post-mortem fate, vividly symbolized by suffering in Yama’s realm and the Vaitaraṇī; awareness of consequences should motivate ethical self-restraint and dharmic conduct.
In the Shanti Parva’s instruction to the ruler, Bhishma continues a moral discourse: he points to the grim destiny of wrongdoers and invokes Yama’s domain and the Vaitaraṇī river as images of punitive suffering, strengthening his counsel on righteous governance and personal conduct.