Shloka 13
Gautama–Yama Saṃvāda: Mātṛ-Pitṛ-Ṛṇa (Debt to Parents) and Śubha-Loka Attainment
हिमवान् वा महाशैल: समुद्रो वा महोदधि: । महत्त्वान्नान्वपद्येतां नभसो वान्तरं तथा
himavān vā mahāśailaḥ samudro vā mahodadhiḥ | mahattvān nānvapadyetāṃ nabhaso vāntaraṃ tathā ||
Bhīṣma dijo: «Ya sea Himavān, la gran montaña, o el océano, el vasto depósito de aguas: ni aun por su inmensidad pueden igualar a la esperanza. Así como no se halla el fin del cielo, así tampoco he podido hallar el fin de la esperanza. Y tú, oh el mejor de los ascetas, lo sabes bien, pues se dice que los sabios de austeridad son omniscientes.»
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Hope/desire (āśā) is portrayed as effectively limitless—greater in its reach than even the vastness of mountains, oceans, or the sky. The ethical implication is a warning: unless restrained by discernment and contentment, longing keeps expanding and cannot be ‘filled’ by external magnitude.
In the Śānti Parva’s instruction on dharma and inner discipline, Bhīṣma addresses an ascetic interlocutor and uses cosmic comparisons (Himālaya, ocean, sky) to emphasize that the end of hope cannot be found, acknowledging the sage’s superior insight.