Shloka 16
प्रतीप–गङ्गा संवादः तथा शंतनु–गङ्गा विवाहशर्तिः
Pratīpa and Gaṅgā; Śaṃtanu’s marriage condition
तपसा कर्शित: क्षाम: क्षीणमांसास्थिशोणित: । स च लोकमिमं जित्वा लोक॑ विजयते परम्,तपस्यासे मांस, हड्डी तथा रक्तके क्षीण हो जानेपर जिसका शरीर कृश और दुर्बल हो गया है, वह (वानप्रस्थ) मुनि इस लोकको जीतकर परलोकपर भी विजय पाता है
tapasā karśitaḥ kṣāmaḥ kṣīṇamāṃsāsthiśoṇitaḥ | sa ca lokam imaṃ jitvā lokaṃ vijayate param ||
Āṣṭaka dijo: «Consumido por la austeridad—enflaquecido, con carne, huesos y sangre menguados—el asceta que así se ha vencido a sí mismo conquista este mundo; y, conquistándolo, alcanza también la victoria en el mundo superior.»
अद्टक उवाच
Educational Q&A
True victory is framed as inner conquest through tapas: disciplined austerity that subdues bodily craving and ego. Such self-mastery is said to yield success in worldly life (ethical steadiness, restraint) and also merit leading to a superior post-mortem state.
Āṣṭaka is speaking in a didactic context, praising the power of ascetic practice. He describes an ascetic whose body is weakened by austerities and asserts that this disciplined life leads to victory both in the present world and in the higher world.