Shloka 47
मनु-उपदेशः — भूत-उत्पत्ति, इन्द्रिय-निवृत्ति, तथा पर-स्वभाव-विवेकः
Manu’s Instruction on Elemental Origination, Sense-Withdrawal, and Discrimination of the Supreme Nature
यथा वारिचर: पक्षी सलिलेन न लिप्यते । एवमेव कृतप्रज्ञो भूतेषु परिवर्तते,जैसे जलचर पक्षी जलसे लिप्त नहीं होता, उसी प्रकार विशुद्धबुद्धि ज्ञानी पुरुष निर्लिप्त रहकर ही सम्पूर्ण भूतोंमें विचरता है
yathā vāricaraḥ pakṣī salilena na lipyate | evam eva kṛtaprajño bhūteṣu parivartate ||
Bhīṣma dit : De même qu’un oiseau vivant dans l’eau s’y meut sans en être souillé ni alourdi, ainsi l’homme dont la sagesse est accomplie chemine parmi tous les êtres sans attachement intérieur : il agit dans le monde tout en demeurant sans tache.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
True wisdom expresses itself as non-attachment: the wise person engages with the world and with all beings, yet remains inwardly untainted—free from clinging, egoistic ownership, and the stains of desire and aversion.
In Śānti Parva, Bhīṣma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on dharma and right conduct after the war. Here he uses a vivid simile—like a water-bird untouched by water—to describe how a realized, steady-minded person lives and acts among beings without being bound by them.