Shloka 143
Śuka’s Guṇa-Transcendence and Vyāsa’s Consolation (शुकगति-वर्णनम्)
स्वप्नकामो न लभते स्वप्तुं कार्यार्थिभिर्जन: । शयने चाप्यनुज्ञात: सुप्त उत्थाप्यतेडवश:
svapna-kāmo na labhate svaptuṁ kāryārthibhir janaḥ | śayane cāpy anu-jñātaḥ supta utthāpyate ’vaśaḥ ||
Bhishma dit : «Celui qui désire dormir ne l’obtient pas, car il est entouré de gens pressés par leurs affaires. Même lorsqu’on l’a autorisé à s’étendre, il est, impuissant, tiré du sommeil à la demande d’autrui.»
भीष्य उवाच
Educational Q&A
Personal comfort is often sacrificed under the weight of duty—especially in governance. The verse highlights the ethical cost of responsibility: one must endure inconvenience for the sake of others’ needs.
Bhishma illustrates, through a vivid everyday image, how a person (implicitly a ruler) cannot even sleep peacefully because people with urgent business keep approaching; even after lying down, he is compelled to rise again.