Shloka 13
जनक–पराशर संवादः — वर्ण-गोत्र-धर्मविचारः
Janaka–Parāśara: Varṇa, Gotra, and Dharma Inquiry
सत्त्वं रजस्तम: काल: कर्म बुद्धिश्च भारत । मनःषष्ठानि चैतेषु ईश्वर: समकल्पयत्
sattvaṁ rajas tamaḥ kālaḥ karma buddhiś ca bhārata | manaḥ-ṣaṣṭhāni caiteṣu īśvaraḥ samakalpayat bharatanandana ||
Bhīṣma dit : «Ô Bharata, ô joie des Bharata, le Seigneur a façonné au sein des êtres incarnés les constituants de sattva, rajas et tamas ; et aussi le temps, le karma et l’intellect—avec le mental, compté comme la sixième faculté parmi les sens. Ainsi, l’outillage intérieur par lequel les créatures pensent, choisissent et agissent n’est pas le fruit du hasard : c’est un don ordonné ; de lui naissent à la fois le combat moral et la possibilité d’une maîtrise de soi, disciplinée et ferme.»
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse explains that embodied life operates through an ordained inner framework: the three guṇas (sattva, rajas, tamas), along with time, karma, and buddhi, and the mind as the coordinating sixth faculty among the senses. Ethical life therefore involves understanding these forces and cultivating discernment so that action is guided rather than driven.
In the Śānti Parva’s instruction to Yudhiṣṭhira, Bhīṣma continues a philosophical-ethical exposition on the constituents of the person and the causes behind behavior. He frames human agency and moral responsibility within a cosmic order established by Īśvara.