Shloka 16
उशनसः (शुक्रस्य) चरितम् — The Account of Uśanā (Śukra): Yoga, Grievance, and Pacification
वृत्र बवाच सत्येन तपसा चैव विदित्वासंशयं हाहम् । न शोचामि न हृष्यामि भूतानामागतिं गतिम्
Vṛtra uvāca: satyena tapasā caiva viditvā saṁśayaṁ hāham | na śocāmi na hṛṣyāmi bhūtānām āgatiṁ gatiṁ ||
Vṛtra berkata: “Wahai Brāhmaṇa, melalui kebenaran dan tapa-askese aku telah mengetahui—tanpa keraguan—hukum tersembunyi tentang datang dan perginya makhluk (kelahiran dan kepergian berulang). Karena itu, mengenai jalan dan nasib mereka, aku tidak berduka dan tidak pula bersorak.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
True insight into the law of beings’ coming and going (the cycle of embodied existence shaped by karma) leads to equanimity: one should not be tossed between grief and elation. Satya (truthfulness) and tapas (disciplined austerity) are presented as means that mature into such steady knowledge.
Within Bhīṣma’s discourse, a teaching is conveyed through the voice of Vṛtra, who addresses a Brāhmaṇa and declares that he has understood, beyond doubt, the mystery of living beings’ movements in existence; as a result, he remains emotionally even—neither mourning nor celebrating their destinies.