Shloka 20
जनक–पराशर संवादः — वर्ण-गोत्र-धर्मविचारः
Janaka–Parāśara: Varṇa, Gotra, and Dharma Inquiry
स्पर्शनं स्पर्शती स्पर्शान् बुद्धिर्विक्रियतेडसकृत् । यदा प्रार्थयते किज्चित् तदा भवति सा मनः
sparśanaṁ sparśatī sparśān buddhir vikriyate 'sakṛt | yadā prārthayate kiñcit tadā bhavati sā manaḥ ||
Bhīṣma dit : « Le contact (sparśa) touche les contacts des sens, et l’intellect (buddhi) est sans cesse modifié et troublé. Lorsque cette même faculté se met à rechercher ou à désirer quelque chose, alors elle devient “mental” (manas) — l’élan qui interroge, choisit et court après les objets. »
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse distinguishes buddhi (discriminative intellect) from manas (desiring mind): sensory contact repeatedly perturbs the intellect, and when the inner faculty starts craving or petitioning for an object, it functions as ‘mind’. Ethical self-mastery begins by noticing this shift from discernment to desire.
In Śānti Parva, Bhīṣma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on dharma and inner discipline. Here he explains how sense-contact agitates the inner faculties and how desire converts clear discernment into restless mind, supporting teachings on restraint and renunciation.