Shloka 11
Varṇa-lakṣaṇa and Ātma-saṃyama (Marks of Social Conduct and Self-Restraint) | वर्णलक्षणम् एवं आत्मसंयमः
स्वकर्मफलनिभक्षेपं विधानपरिरक्षितम् । भूतग्राममिमं काल: समनन््तात् परिकर्षति
svakarmaphalanibhakṣepaṁ vidhānaparirakṣitam | bhūtagrāmam imaṁ kālaḥ samanantāt parikarṣati ||
Bhishma dit : «Le fruit des actes de chacun est tel un dépôt mis de côté, conservé sous la garde de l’ordre cosmique. Quand survient l’heure convenable, le Temps attire ce fruit accumulé vers l’ensemble des êtres, plaçant chaque créature face à ce qu’elle a gagné.»
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Karmic results are not lost: each person’s deeds leave a preserved ‘deposit’ of consequences, safeguarded by cosmic order, and Time inevitably delivers those results when conditions mature.
In the Shanti Parva’s instruction on dharma and right understanding, Bhishma explains to the listener that the unfolding of pleasure and pain in beings is governed by karma, with Time acting as the force that brings stored results to fruition.