Shloka 16
Gautama’s Flight, the Enchanted Grove, and the Arrival of Rājadharma
Nāḍījaṅgha
धर्मार्थहेतो: क्षमते तितिक्षा क्षान्तिरुच्यते । लोकसंग्रहणार्थ वै सा तु धैर्येण लभ्यते
dharmārtha-hetoḥ kṣamate titikṣā kṣāntir ucyate | loka-saṅgrahaṇārthaṃ vai sā tu dhairyeṇa labhyate | (anāsūyā: paradoṣādarśanam)
Bhishma dit : L’endurance qui supporte l’épreuve pour le dharma et l’artha se nomme titikṣā—on l’appelle aussi kṣānti (patience et indulgence). Il faut assurément la pratiquer afin de soutenir et de guider la société par l’exemple de sa propre conduite. Une telle endurance s’obtient par le dhairya (fermeté intérieure). (Ne pas relever les fautes d’autrui se nomme anāsūyā.)
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
True forbearance (titikṣā/kṣānti) is the capacity to endure hardship specifically in pursuit of dharma and rightful worldly aims (artha). It is not passive weakness but a disciplined virtue cultivated through dhairya (steadfast courage), and it serves loka-saṅgraha—supporting and guiding society by personal example.
In the Śānti Parva’s instruction on dharma after the war, Bhīṣma teaches Yudhiṣṭhira about ethical virtues. Here he defines and praises titikṣā (endurance) as a socially sustaining practice, linking it to inner steadiness and adding the allied virtue of anāsūyā—refraining from fault-finding.