Shloka 19
Haṃsa–Sādhya Saṃvāda: Satya, Dama, Kṣamā and the Discipline of Speech
स्वयं मृत्पिण्डभूतस्य परतन्त्रस्य सर्वदा । को हेतु: स्वजन पोष्टूं रक्षितुं वादृढात्मन:
svayaṁ mṛtpiṇḍabhūtasya paratantrasya sarvadā | ko hetuḥ svajanaṁ poṣṭuṁ rakṣituṁ vā dṛḍhātmanaḥ ||
Bhīṣma dit : «Quand l’homme, en vérité, n’est qu’une motte de terre quant au corps et demeure toujours dépendant de forces hors de sa maîtrise, quelle capacité un esprit vacillant peut-il avoir pour nourrir et protéger les siens ? La prétention d’être un gardien inébranlable est creuse tant qu’on ne s’est pas d’abord maîtrisé soi-même.»
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Without inner steadiness and self-mastery, a person cannot truly fulfill the ethical responsibilities of sustaining and protecting dependents; bodily strength and social claims are unreliable when one remains fundamentally dependent and unstable.
In Śānti Parva’s instruction on dharma and conduct, Bhīṣma challenges the notion that an unsteady person can act as a reliable protector of family and dependents, emphasizing the primacy of inner firmness for righteous leadership.