आचारप्रशंसा
Praise of Ācāra as the Basis of Longevity, Fame, and Prosperity
ब्रह्मचारी च नित्य॑ं स्यात् पादं पादेन नाक्रमेत् अमावास्यां पौर्णमास्यां चतुर्दश्यां च सर्वश:
bhīṣma uvāca | brahmacārī ca nityaṃ syāt pādaṃ pādena nākramet | amāvāsyāṃ paurṇamāsyāṃ caturdaśyāṃ ca sarvaśaḥ |
Bhīṣma dijo: Debe uno vivir siempre como brahmacārin, guardando continencia y disciplina en la conducta. No debe, por descuido o falta de respeto, oprimir un pie con el otro. En la luna nueva (amāvāsyā), en la luna llena (pūrṇamāsī) y en el decimocuarto día lunar (caturdaśī) de cada quincena, debe observarse una continencia estricta en todo sentido, evitando los placeres sensuales y velando por la propia conducta.
भीष्म उवाच
The verse teaches disciplined brahmacarya—continuous self-restraint and careful bodily conduct—especially emphasizing stricter continence on significant lunar days (new moon, full moon, and the fourteenth tithi).
In the Anuśāsana Parva, Bhishma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on dharma and right conduct. Here he lays down practical rules of restraint and observance, framing them as part of a regulated ethical life.