Shloka 24

Śānti-parva 206: Guṇa-hetu Moha, Kāma-krodha Chain, Indriya-utpatti, and Nirodha

Devanagari script

सूक्ष्मेण मनसा विद्यो वाचा वक्तुंन शकक्‍्नुम: । मनो हि मनसा ग्राहां दर्शनेन च दर्शनम्‌,हम ध्यानद्वारा शुद्ध और सूक्ष्म हुए मनसे परमात्माके स्वरूपका अनुभव तो कर सकते हैं, किंतु वाणीद्वारा उसका वर्णन नहीं कर सकते; क्योंकि मनके द्वारा ही मानसिक विषयका ग्रहण हो सकता है और ज्ञानके द्वारा ही ज्ञेयको जाना जा सकता है

Transliteration

bhīṣma uvāca | sūkṣmeṇa manasā vidyo vācā vaktuṃ na śaknumaḥ | mano hi manasā grāhyaṃ darśanena ca darśanam |

Translation

Bhīṣma berkata: Dengan batin yang telah dimurnikan hingga menjadi halus, kita dapat menangkap Realitas Tertinggi secara langsung; namun kita tidak mampu mengungkapkannya lewat kata-kata. Sebab objek-objek batin hanya dapat digenggam oleh batin, dan pengetahuan tentang penglihatan langsung hanya dikenal melalui penglihatan itu sendiri.

Word by Word

{'sūkṣmeṇa''by the subtle (refined, minute) means

with subtlety', 'manasā''by the mind

with the mind (instrumental)', 'vidyaḥ/vidyo''the wise

those who know (contextknowers of truth)', 'vācā': 'by speech

through words', 'vaktum''to speak

to describe', 'na śaknumaḥ''we are not able

we cannot', 'manaḥ''mind', 'hi': 'indeed

for', 'manasā grāhyam''graspable only by the mind

apprehended through mind alone', 'darśanena''by seeing

by direct perception/vision', 'darśanam''seeing

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

Bhishma

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Ultimate reality is directly realizable through a purified, subtle mind, but it cannot be adequately captured in words; inner experience is known only by the corresponding inner faculty.

What is happening in the narrative?

In the Shanti Parva’s instruction on peace and liberation, Bhishma continues teaching about higher knowledge, emphasizing that the Supreme is approached through inner refinement and direct realization rather than verbal description.