Shloka 646
ब्राह्मणस्य पूर्वतरा वृत्तिः — The Earlier Ideal Conduct of a Brahmana
River-of-Saṃsāra Metaphor
एवं स्वराज्यनाशे त्वं शोक॑ सम्प्रसहिष्यसि । तुम काम-भोगकी इच्छाको छोड़ो और राजलक्ष्मीके इस मदको त्याग दो। इस दशामें यदि तुम्हारे राज्यका नाश हो जाय तो तुम उस शोकको सह सकोगे
evaṁ svarājya-nāśe tvaṁ śokaṁ samprasahiṣyasi |
Bhishma berkata: “Dengan demikian, bila kedaulatanmu sendiri hancur, engkau akan mampu menanggung duka itu. Maka tinggalkan hasrat akan kenikmatan indria, dan lepaskan mabuk yang timbul dari kemuliaan kerajaan; dalam keadaan demikian, sekalipun kerajaannmu binasa, engkau sanggup memikul kesedihan.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhīṣma teaches that resilience in calamity comes from inner renunciation: give up craving for sense-pleasures and the pride/intoxication of royal prosperity, so that even the loss of sovereignty can be borne without being shattered.
In Śānti Parva, Bhīṣma is instructing the listener on righteous conduct and the mindset of a ruler. Here he warns against attachment to enjoyment and the arrogance of power, framing them as causes of unbearable grief when fortune reverses.