Chapter 2: Sudarśana Upākhyāna — Atithi-Dharma and the Conquest of Mṛtyu
Gṛhastha-Vrata
स््नेहो रागश्न तन्द्री च मोहो द्रोहश्च॒ केवल: । तव शुश्रूषया राजन् राजपुत्र्या विनिर्जिता:
sneho rāgaś ca tandrī ca moho drohaś ca kevalaḥ | tava śuśrūṣayā rājan rājaputryā vinirjitāḥ ||
भीष्म ने कहा—राजन्! राजकुमारी ने भी तुम्हारी सेवा-परायणता के बल से स्नेह (आसक्ति), राग, आलस्य, मोह और यहाँ तक कि द्रोह—इन दोषों को जीत लिया है।
भीष्म उवाच
Devoted, disciplined service (śuśrūṣā) can purify character: by sustained care and obedience directed toward a rightful duty, inner faults like attachment, passion, laziness, delusion, and hostility are gradually subdued.
Bhīṣma addresses a king and praises a princess, stating that through her faithful attendance upon him she has overcome several moral and psychological दोषs (faults), highlighting her exemplary conduct and the transformative power of service.