Mahabharata — Anushasana Parva, Shloka 13
Adhyāya 57: Tapas–Dāna Phala
On the Fruits of Austerity and Giving
क्वचिदप्सरसां संघान् गन्धर्वाणां च पार्थिव
kvacid apsarasāṃ saṅghān gandharvāṇāṃ ca pārthiva | pṛthvīnātha! kvacid jhuṇḍa-kī-jhuṇḍa apsarāḥ vihāraṃ kurvanti sma | kvacid gandharvāṇāṃ samudāyāḥ svapriyatamānām āliṅgana-pāśe baddhāḥ santi sma | tān sarvān rājā dadarśa | te kadācid enaṃ dṛśyante sma kadācin na dṛśyante sma ||
भीष्म बोले—हे राजन्, पृथ्वीनाथ! कहीं अप्सराओं के दल-के-दल क्रीड़ा में मग्न थे; कहीं गन्धर्वों के समूह अपनी प्रियतमाओं के आलिंगन-पाश में बँधे हुए से दिखते थे। राजा ने उन सबको देखा—पर कभी वे उन्हें देख पाते थे और कभी नहीं।
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Sense-pleasures and their objects can appear captivating yet remain unstable and elusive; a ruler (and any seeker of dharma) should recognize their fleeting, illusory nature and avoid becoming ‘bound’ by attachment.
Bhishma describes a scene where the king witnesses celestial beings—Apsarases sporting and Gandharvas entwined with their beloveds—yet the vision is intermittent: they are seen at one moment and vanish the next, highlighting the unreliability of such experiences.