Shloka 157
नृशंस-लक्षणनिर्णयः | Determining the Marks of Cruel Conduct
Nṛśaṃsa
इति श्रीमहाभारते शान्तिपर्वणि आपद्धर्मपर्वणि पवनशाल्मलिसंवादे सप्तपञठ्चाशदधिकशततमो<ध्याय:
iti śrīmahābhārate śāntiparvaṇi āpaddharmaparvaṇi pavaṇaśālmalisaṃvāde saptapañcāśad-adhikaśatatamo 'dhyāyaḥ
Así termina el capítulo ciento cincuenta y siete del Śānti Parva del Śrī Mahābhārata, dentro de la sección Āpaddharma, en el diálogo entre Pavana (el Viento) y el árbol Śālmalī. Este colofón marca el cierre del episodio de enseñanza y lo sitúa dentro de la instrucción más amplia de Bhīṣma sobre el dharma en la adversidad.
भीष्य उवाच
Educational Q&A
This line is a colophon rather than a doctrinal verse: it frames the teaching as part of Āpaddharma—ethical conduct under crisis—delivered through the Pavana–Śālmali dialogue within Bhīṣma’s instruction. Its function is to locate and conclude the episode, emphasizing the Mahābhārata’s method of embedding dharma-teachings in illustrative dialogues.
The text signals the end of a chapter: the Pavana (Wind) and Śālmali (tree) dialogue has concluded, and the compiler’s closing formula identifies the work (Mahābhārata), the book (Śānti Parva), the subsection (Āpaddharma), and the chapter number (157th).