Shloka 42
Suvarṇa-dāna: Kārttikeya’s Origin and the Defeat of Tāraka (सुवर्णदान-प्रसङ्गे कार्त्तिकेय-उत्पत्ति तथा तारकवधः)
ब्रह्म॒चर्येण तपसा यत्नेन च दमेन च
brahmacaryeṇa tapasā yatnena ca damena ca, śakyaḥ samāsādayituṃ golokaḥ puṣkarekṣaṇa.
Bhīṣma dijo: «Oh, de ojos de loto, a Goloka sólo se llega mediante brahmacarya (disciplina casta), austeridad, esfuerzo sostenido y dominio de uno mismo. Ese estado supremo no se alcanza por el mero deseo, sino por la práctica constante de observancias virtuosas: control de los sentidos, dádivas meritorias, peregrinación a los tīrtha, gran tapas y otras obras auspiciosas.»
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Attainment of a higher realm like Goloka is presented as the fruit of sustained ethical-spiritual discipline—brahmacarya, tapas, diligent effort, and sense-control—supported by other meritorious acts such as charity and pilgrimage.
In Anuśāsana Parva, Bhīṣma continues his instruction on dharma, explaining to his listener that exalted destinations are not gained casually but through rigorous vows and virtuous practice, emphasizing restraint and austerity as primary means.