Shloka 90
Śuka’s Guṇa-Transcendence and Vyāsa’s Consolation (शुकगति-वर्णनम्)
कामात् क्रोधाद् भयाल्लो भाद् दैन्याच्चानार्यकात् तथा | ह्वीतोडनुक्रोशतो मानाजन्न वक्ष्यामि कथंचन,मैं काम, क्रोध, भय, लोभ, दैन्य, अनार्यता, लज्जा, दया तथा अभिमानसे किसी तरह कोई बात नहीं बोलूँगी
kāmāt krodhād bhayāl lobhād dainyāc cānāryakāt tathā | hrīto ’nukrośato mānāj na vakṣyāmi kathaṃcana ||
Bhīṣma said: “I will not speak in any way under the sway of desire, anger, fear, greed, dejection, or ignoble conduct; nor out of shame, misplaced compassion, or pride. My words will be guided by what is right, not by these inner pressures.”
भीष्य उवाच
Educational Q&A
One should not speak under the influence of powerful emotions and moral weaknesses—desire, anger, fear, greed, dejection, ignobility, shame, pity, or pride. Ethical speech requires inner restraint and commitment to dharma rather than reactive impulses.
In Śānti Parva, Bhīṣma is instructing Yudhiṣṭhira on dharma and right conduct. Here he emphasizes that his counsel will not be driven by personal emotion or social pressure, but by principled discernment.