Shloka 3
तद्धद् गोडश्वमनुष्येषु तद्धद्धस्तिमृगादिषु । तद्धत् कीटपतड्लेषु प्रसक्तात्मा स्वकर्मभि:
taddhad goḍaśvamanūṣyeṣu taddhaddhastimṛgādiṣu | taddhat kīṭapataṅgeṣu prasaktātmā svakarmabhiḥ ||
भीष्म बोले—वही (अन्तरात्मा) गौ, अश्व और मनुष्यों में है; वही हाथी, मृग आदि में है; वही कीट-पतंगों में भी है। परन्तु प्रत्येक जीव अपने-अपने कर्मों से बँधा हुआ, उन्हीं में आसक्त रहता है।
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhīṣma emphasizes the sameness of the inner principle across all living beings, while explaining that differences in behavior and life-condition arise from attachment shaped by one’s own karma.
In Śānti Parva’s instruction on dharma and liberation-oriented insight, Bhīṣma continues a reflective teaching: he points to the shared essence in creatures from humans to insects, then notes how karmic tendencies keep each being absorbed in its particular actions.