Shloka 4
दमप्रशंसा — Praise of Self-Restraint
Dama
क्रोधात् काममवाप्याथ लो भमोहौ च मानवा: । मानदर्पावहड़्कारमहड्कारात् तत:ः क्रिया:
Bhīṣma uvāca: krodhāt kāmam avāpya atha lobha-mohau ca mānavāḥ | māna-darpāv ahaṅkāram ahaṅkārāt tataḥ kriyāḥ ||
Dari amarah timbul hasrat; dari hasrat manusia jatuh ke dalam ketamakan dan delusi, juga ke dalam rasa diri, keangkuhan, dan ego. Setelah itu, digerakkan oleh ego, segala tindakan mereka pun berlangsung.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhishma outlines a moral-psychological chain: anger gives rise to desire; desire breeds greed and delusion; these foster pride, arrogance, and egoism; and ego then becomes the driver of one’s actions. The teaching urges restraint at the earliest stage—checking anger—to prevent the cascade into unethical conduct.
In the Shanti Parva’s instruction on dharma and right conduct, Bhishma is advising (as a moral teacher) by analyzing how inner passions develop and how they shape behavior. This verse is part of a didactic sequence explaining the origins of harmful action.