Shloka 27
बलीन्द्रसंवादः — Kāla, Anityatā, and the Limits of Agency
Mahābhārata 12.217
अन्तकाले हुपासन्ते तपसा दग्धकिल्विषा: । सर्व एते महात्मानो गच्छन्ति परमां गतिम्
antakāle hy upāsante tapasā dagdha-kilbiṣāḥ | sarva ete mahātmāno gacchanti paramāṁ gatim ||
Bhīṣma dit : «À l’ultime heure, ceux dont les fautes ont été consumées par l’austérité se vouent (au Suprême). Tous ces grands êtres atteignent l’état suprême.»
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Purification through tapas (disciplined austerity) removes moral impurities, enabling focused upāsanā at life’s end; such purified seekers attain the highest spiritual goal (paramā gati), understood as Brahman-realization or liberation.
In Bhīṣma’s instruction during the Śānti Parva, he describes the fate of spiritually disciplined people: those who have burned away sins through austerity and turn their contemplation toward the Supreme at the final moment reach the supreme destination.