Shloka 8
कामद्रुम-रूपकः तथा शरीर-पुर-रूपकः
The Desire-Tree and the Body-as-City Metaphors
इन्द्रियाणां तु सर्वेषां वश्यात्मा चलितस्मृति: । आत्मन: सम्प्रदानेन मर्त्यों मृत्युमुपा श्वुते
vyāsa uvāca | indriyāṇāṁ tu sarveṣāṁ vaśyātmā calitasmṛtiḥ | ātmanaḥ sampradānena martyo mṛtyum upāśnute | etat te vartayiṣyāmi yathāvad anupūrvaśaḥ | śṛṇu tat tvam ihaikāgro yathātattvaṁ yathā ca tat |
व्यास ने कहा— जिसका अन्तःकरण समस्त इन्द्रियों के वश में हो जाता है, उसकी स्मृति और विवेक डगमगा जाते हैं। वह अपने को काम आदि अन्तःशत्रुओं के हाथ सौंपकर मृत्यु-दुःख का अनुभव करता है। इसलिए मैं इसे तुम्हें क्रमशः और यथावत् बताऊँगा; तुम यहाँ एकाग्र होकर यथार्थ तत्त्व सुनो।
व्यास उवाच
Educational Q&A
If the self becomes ruled by the senses, one’s smṛti—mindful recollection and moral discernment—gets disturbed. Losing inner governance, a person effectively hands himself over to inner enemies like desire, which leads to ruin and the suffering associated with death. The remedy implied is sense-restraint and steady, attentive understanding of truth.
Vyāsa is addressing a listener in an instructional setting within the Śānti Parva. He states a moral-psychological principle about sense-dominance and its consequences, then promises to explain the topic systematically and urges the listener to hear with focused attention.