Shloka 7
मनस्–बुद्धि–गुणविचारः (Manas–Buddhi–Guṇa Inquiry) — Meditation and Nirguṇa Realization
अभयं चानिमित्तं च न तत् क्लेशसमावृतम् । द्वाभ्यां मुक्त त्रिभिर्मुक्तमष्टाभिस्त्रिभिरेव च
abhayaṃ cānimittaṃ ca na tat kleśasamāvṛtam | dvābhyāṃ muktaṃ tribhir muktam aṣṭābhis tribhir eva ca ||
Bhishma berkata: “Hakikat Tertinggi itu tanpa takut dan tanpa sebab luar; ia tidak terselubung oleh kleśa (derita batin). Ia bebas dari pasangan suka dan tidak suka; bebas dari tiga guṇa yang melahirkan reaksi-reaksi itu; dan bebas pula dari rangkaian delapan unsur keterikatan jasmani. Di sana, bahkan triad ‘yang mengetahui, pengetahuan, dan yang diketahui’ pun tidak berlaku—maka ia diajarkan sebagai kediaman tertinggi, melampaui kerusakan dan rasa takut.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse characterizes the Supreme as unconditioned and fearless: not obscured by kleśas, not driven by dualities (like/dislike), not constituted by the three guṇas, and transcending the structures of embodied experience—so completely that even the subject–object–knowledge triad is absent.
In Śānti Parva, Bhīṣma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on liberation-oriented dharma. Here he describes the nature of the highest abode/Reality by negating layers of bondage—afflictions, dualities, guṇas, and cognitive triads—to guide the listener toward non-attached, discriminative understanding.