Shloka 155
Śuka’s Guṇa-Transcendence and Vyāsa’s Consolation (शुकगति-वर्णनम्)
को राज्यमभिपलद्येत प्राप्पय चोपशमं लभेत् । जिसमें सुख तो बहुत थोड़ा, किंतु दुःख बहुत अधिक है, जो सर्वथा सारहीन है, जो घास-फूसमें लगी आगके समान क्षणस्थायी और फेन तथा बुद्बुदके समान क्षणभंगुर है, ऐसे राज्यको कौन ग्रहण करेगा? और ग्रहण कर लेनेपर कौन शान्ति पा सकता है? ।।
ko rājyam abhipālayet prāpya copaśamaṁ labhet | yasmin sukhaṁ tu bahu alpam kintu duḥkhaṁ bahu adhikam | sarvathā sārahīnam | tṛṇa-kāṣṭheṣu lagna-agnivat kṣaṇasthāyī | phena-budbuda-sadṛśaṁ kṣaṇabhaṅguram | evaṁ-vidhaṁ rājyam kaḥ grahīṣyati? grahītvā ca kaḥ śāntiṁ prāpsyati? || mamedam iti yac cedaṁ puraṁ rāṣṭraṁ ca manyase
Bhīṣma said: Who would choose to take up kingship—and, having obtained it, who could truly find peace—when in it happiness is very slight but suffering far greater; when it is wholly without lasting essence; when it is as momentary as fire catching in dry grass, and as fragile as foam and a bubble? Who would accept such a kingdom, and after accepting it, who could attain tranquillity? And if you think, ‘This city and this realm are mine’—that very notion is the root of bondage and unrest.
भीष्य उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhīṣma teaches that political power and possessions are inherently unstable and bring disproportionate suffering; peace cannot arise from clinging to ‘mine-ness’ (mamedam iti). True tranquillity comes from detachment and clear discernment of impermanence.
In the Śānti Parva’s instruction on dharma and governance, Bhīṣma warns the listener against the seductive but painful nature of rulership, using vivid images (grass-fire, foam, bubble) to show how quickly power collapses and how possessive identification with city and realm fuels unrest.