Shloka 4
कपिलगोसंवादे गृहस्थ-त्यागधर्मयोः प्रमाण्यविचारः
Kapila–Cow Dialogue: Authority of Householder and Renunciant Dharmas
स कदाचिन्महातेजा जलवासो महीपते । चचार लोकान विप्रर्षि: प्रेक्षमाणो मनोजव:
sa kadācin mahātejā jalavāso mahīpate | cacāra lokān viprarṣiḥ prekṣamāṇo manojavaḥ ||
Bhishma berkata: “Wahai raja, pada suatu ketika resi-brahmana yang bercahaya itu—yang tinggal di wilayah pesisir yang berair—berangkat mengembara menelusuri berbagai loka, bergerak secepat pikiran, demi menyaksikan segala alam.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse foregrounds the ideal of the sage as a seeker of comprehensive vision: moving beyond a fixed locale, he surveys the ‘worlds’ to understand reality directly. In the Śānti Parva’s ethical frame, such wide seeing supports dharma—right judgment grounded in experience, detachment, and insight rather than narrow interest.
Bhīṣma tells the king that an unnamed radiant brahmin-seer, who lived in a watery coastal region, at one time began to roam through various realms with mind-like speed, motivated by the desire to behold and examine the worlds.