Shloka 40
Śakra–Namuci-saṃvāda: Śoka-nivāraṇa and Daiva-vicāra
Indra and Namuci on grief, composure, and inevitability
एतदाहुः समाहार क्षेत्रमध्यात्मचिन्तका: । स्थितो मनसि यो भाव: स वै क्षेत्रज्ञ उच्यते
etad āhuḥ samāhāraṃ kṣetram adhyātma-cintakāḥ | sthito manasi yo bhāvaḥ sa vai kṣetrajña ucyate ||
Mereka yang merenungkan kebenaran Diri batin menyatakan bahwa himpunan—tubuh ini beserta indria—adalah ‘kṣetra’ (medan). Prinsip sadar yang bersemayam dalam batin, kesadaran yang mengetahui dan menerangi pengalaman, disebut ‘kṣetrajña’, sang diri individual.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse distinguishes between the ‘field’ (kṣetra)—the composite of body and senses—and the ‘knower of the field’ (kṣetrajña)—the conscious principle that experiences and knows. Ethical clarity arises from not confusing the changing body-mind with the witnessing self.
In the Shanti Parva’s instruction on dharma and inner knowledge, Bhishma teaches Yudhishthira a philosophical framework: defining the body-sense complex as the arena of experience and identifying the indwelling consciousness as the true knower.