Shloka 31
Adhyāya 180: Jīva, Śarīra, and the Fire Analogy (भृगु–भरद्वाज संवादः)
अपगतभयरागमोहदर्पो धृतिमतिबुद्धिसमन्वित: प्रशान्त: । उपगतफलभोगिनो निशम्य व्रतमिदमाजगरं शुचिश्चरामि
apagatabhayarāgamohadarpo dhṛtimatibuddhisamanvitaḥ praśāntaḥ | upagata-phalabhogino niśamya vratam idam ājagaraṁ śuciś carāmi |
Bhīṣma dit : «La peur, l’attachement, l’illusion et l’orgueil sont tombés de moi. Doué de fermeté, de juste réflexion et de discernement, je suis pleinement apaisé. Voyant ceux qui n’acceptent et ne goûtent que ce qui vient de soi-même — par la force du karma déjà engagé à porter fruit (prārabdha) — je pratique, dans la pureté de l’esprit, ce “vœu du python” (ājagara-vrata), discipline du non-saisir et du contentement.»
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches inner renunciation: when fear, attachment, delusion, and pride are abandoned, one lives in serenity and practices contentment by accepting only what comes naturally as the ‘fruit’ of prior causes, without restless pursuit or grasping.
Bhishma, instructing on dharma in the Shanti Parva, describes his adopted discipline (ājagara-vrata). He presents himself as tranquil and purified, modeling an ascetic ethic of non-seeking and acceptance of whatever arrives by destiny/previous karma.