Shloka 56
Śaraṇāgatapālana—Prastāvanā
Protection of the Refuge-Seeker: Opening of the Kapota Narrative
न शुष्कवैरं कुर्वीत बाहुभ्यां न नदीं तरेत् । अनर्थकमनायुष्यं गोविषाणस्य भक्षणम् | दन्ताश्न परिमृज्यन्ते रसश्चापि न लभ्यते
na śuṣkavairaṁ kurvīta bāhubhyāṁ na nadīṁ taret | anarthakam anāyuṣyaṁ goviṣāṇasya bhakṣaṇam | dantāśnaḥ parimṛjyante rasaś cāpi na labhyate |
Bhīṣma dit : Qu’on ne nourrisse pas une inimitié stérile, et qu’on ne tente pas non plus de franchir une rivière en nageant à la seule force de ses bras nus. Un tel effort est vain et même abrège la vie—tel un chien qui mâche une corne de vache : ses dents s’usent, sans qu’il n’en tire ni saveur ni nourriture. L’enseignement est d’éviter l’hostilité futile et les peines qui se retournent contre soi sans bénéfice véritable.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Do not engage in ‘dry’ or purposeless enmity, and do not undertake self-harming efforts that cannot yield real benefit. Futile hostility and reckless exertion only wear one down, like chewing a cow’s horn—pain without nourishment.
In Śānti Parva, Bhīṣma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on dharma and wise conduct after the war. Here he uses vivid analogies to discourage pointless grudges and unproductive, damaging actions.