Shloka 38
राज्ञोऽभिषेकः, अराजकदोषः, दण्डधारणस्य आवश्यकता
Royal Consecration, the Fault of Kinglessness, and the Necessity of Enforcement
यदा निवृत्त: सर्वस्मात् कामो यो<5स्य हृदि स्थित: । तदा भवति सत्त्वस्थस्ततो ब्रह्म समश्षुते
yadā nivṛttaḥ sarvasmāt kāmo yo 'sya hṛdi sthitaḥ | tadā bhavati sattvasthaḥ tato brahma samaśnute ||
Bhīṣma teaches that when a person withdraws from every desire that has taken residence in the heart, the mind becomes firmly established in pure clarity (sattva). In that very condition of inner purity and steadiness, one attains direct realization of Brahman—the highest Self—beyond craving and agitation.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Freedom from all heart-rooted desires leads to a mind established in sattva (clarity and purity), and from that inner steadiness arises realization of Brahman.
In Shanti Parva, Bhishma instructs Yudhishthira on dharma and the path to inner peace; here he describes the psychological and ethical condition—cessation of desire—that culminates in spiritual realization.