Shloka 26
Haṃsa–Sādhya Saṃvāda: Satya, Dama, Kṣamā and the Discipline of Speech
द्यूते पाने तथा स्त्रीषु मृगयायां च यो नर: । न प्रमाद्यति सम्मोहात् सततं मुक्त एव सः
dyūte pāne tathā strīṣu mṛgayāyāṃ ca yo naraḥ | na pramādyati sammohāt satataṃ mukta eva saḥ ||
Bhishma dijo: El hombre que, aun en medio del juego, la bebida, el trato con mujeres y la caza, no cae en la negligencia por efecto del engaño—ese permanece siempre libre. La enseñanza subraya que la atadura no nace solo de la presencia de tentaciones, sino de la pérdida del dominio de sí y del discernimiento, que las convierte en vicio y ruina moral.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Freedom is maintained by vigilance and self-mastery: even when surrounded by common temptations—gambling, intoxicants, sexual entanglements, and hunting—one who does not succumb to delusion-born heedlessness avoids bondage and remains 'free'.
In the Śānti Parva’s instruction on dharma and conduct, Bhīṣma advises Yudhiṣṭhira by identifying typical sources of moral downfall and emphasizing that the decisive factor is pramāda (careless loss of discernment), not merely the external presence of such pursuits.