Shloka 36
Śānti-parva 168: Śoka-nivṛtti-buddhi (The Cognition that Reduces Grief) and Piṅgalā’s Nairāśya
पुष्पतो मथ्विव रस: काम आशभ्यां तथा स्मृतः । कामो धर्मार्थयोर्योनि: कामश्चाथ तदात्मक:
puṣpato madhv iva rasaḥ kāma āśrabhyaṃ tathā smṛtaḥ | kāmo dharmārthayor yoniḥ kāmaś cātha tadātmakaḥ ||
Sebagaimana dari bunga keluar sari terbaik laksana madu, demikian pula kāma dikenang sebagai sari yang lebih unggul dibanding dharma dan artha. Kāma adalah rahim/sumber dharma dan artha; karena itu kāma pun, pada hakikatnya, sewarna dengan dharma dan artha.
भीमयेन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames kāma (desire) as a powerful motivating essence: like honey extracted from flowers, it is presented as the driving source that can generate pursuits of dharma (ethical duty) and artha (worldly welfare). It suggests that human striving for duty and prosperity often arises from underlying desire, so kāma must be understood and governed rather than ignored.
In Śānti Parva’s instruction section, Bhīṣma is teaching about the aims of life and their interrelation. Here he uses an analogy (flower and honey) to explain how kāma functions as an inner impetus connected to dharma and artha.