Shloka 13
Adhyāya 249 — Mṛtyu-prādurbhāvaḥ (The Manifestation of Death) / Restraint of Tejas and Ordered Saṃhāra
लोभमोहतृणच्छन्नां कामक्रो धसरीसूपाम् । सत्यतीर्थनृतक्षोभां क्रोधपड्कां सरिद्वराम्
lobha-moha-tṛṇa-channāṁ kāma-krodha-sarīsṛpām | satya-tīrtha-nṛta-kṣobhāṁ krodha-paṅkāṁ sarid-varām ||
Vyāsa berkata: “Sungai bernama saṃsāra ini mengerikan, mengalir melalui semua dunia. Tebingnya terbentuk dari niat-niat batin; ia tertutup oleh rumput kerakusan dan delusi. Hasrat dan amarah tinggal di dalamnya bagaikan ular. Kebenaran adalah tempat penyeberangannya, sedangkan kepalsuan adalah geloranya; amarah adalah lumpurnya. Ia menyeret makhluk dengan daya yang tiada tertandingi. Bagi yang belum menaklukkan diri, ia amat sukar diseberangi; namun dengan kejernihan budi, orang dapat melampauinya.”
व्यास उवाच
Educational Q&A
Saṁsāra is portrayed as a dangerous river whose hidden grasses are greed and delusion, whose serpents are desire and anger, and whose mud is anger itself. Crossing becomes possible through self-conquest and purified discernment, with truth serving as the reliable ‘ford’.
In Śānti Parva’s instruction on liberation and conduct, Vyāsa teaches through an extended metaphor: the human condition is like a river that sweeps beings along, and the listener is urged to cross it by cultivating truth, clarity, and mastery over the mind and passions.