Shloka 12
उशनसः (शुक्रस्य) चरितम् — The Account of Uśanā (Śukra): Yoga, Grievance, and Pacification
अयत्नसाध्यं मुनयो वदन्ति ये चापि मुक्तास्त उपासितव्या: । त्वया च लोकेन च सामरेण तस्मान्नमस्यामि महर्षिसड्घान्
ayatna-sādhyaṃ munayo vadanti ye cāpi muktās ta upāsitavyāḥ | tvayā ca lokena ca sāmareṇa tasmān namasyāmi maharṣi-saṅghān ||
Dijo Bhīṣma: Los sabios declaran que la realización de Brahman no se alcanza por meras acciones externas, por muy esforzadas que sean. Por ello, tú—y el mundo entero junto con los dioses—debéis venerar y servir a quienes están liberados aun viviendo. Por esa razón, me inclino ante las asambleas de los grandes rishis.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Liberation (Brahman-realization) is not secured by external, action-based striving alone; one should seek guidance and cultivate reverence for realized sages (especially jīvanmuktas), whose presence and instruction orient the seeker toward true knowledge and inner freedom.
In the Śānti Parva’s instruction section, Bhīṣma addresses Yudhiṣṭhira and emphasizes the authority of sages: he cites their view on the nature of liberation and concludes by offering homage to the community of great ṛṣis, presenting them as exemplars and worthy objects of upāsanā.