Shloka 7
Dama-pradhāna-dharma (Self-restraint as the Root of Dharma) — Śānti-parva 154
तेषां रुदितशब्देन गृश्रो5भ्येत्य वचो<ब्रवीत् । एकात्मजमिमं लोके त्यक्त्वा गच्छत मा चिरम्
teṣāṁ ruditāśabdena gṛdhro ’bhyetya vaco ’bravīt | ekātmajam imaṁ loke tyaktvā gacchata mā ciram ||
भीष्म ने कहा— उनके रुदन-शब्द से आकृष्ट होकर एक गीध वहाँ आया और बोला— “हे मनुष्यो! इस जगत में इस एकमात्र पुत्र को यहीं छोड़कर लौट जाओ; विलम्ब मत करो। यहाँ काल द्वारा लाए गए स्त्री-पुरुषों के हजारों समूह पड़े हैं, और उनके भाई-बन्धु उन्हें छोड़कर चले जाते हैं।”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the inevitability of death under the power of Kāla (Time) and urges detachment from possessive grief: even the dearest relations must ultimately be left behind, so one should not be immobilized by lamentation.
As people cry over a dead youth described as an only son, a vulture—attracted by the sound—approaches and delivers a stark admonition: countless beings have died here before, and their relatives have all departed, leaving the dead behind; therefore, they too should leave and not linger.