Shloka 39
Saṃhāra-krama (The Sequence of Cosmic Dissolution) — Yājñavalkya’s Discourse
नाभ्यां कण्ठे च शीर्ष च हृदि वक्षसि पार्श्चयो: । दर्शने श्रवणे चापि घ्राणे चामितविक्रम
nābhyāṁ kaṇṭhe ca śīrṣe ca hṛdi vakṣasi pārśvayoḥ | darśane śravaṇe cāpi ghrāṇe cāmitavikrama ||
Bhīṣma berkata: “Wahai raja yang tak terukur keperkasaannya! Seorang yogin yang berteguh dalam mahāvrata Yoga dengan batin terpusat, dan melalui latihan dhāraṇā menyatukan Ātman yang halus dengan Paramātman pada pusat-pusat tubuh—di pusar, tenggorokan, kepala, jantung, dada, sisi-sisi tubuh—serta pada daya penglihatan, pendengaran, dan penciuman; bila ia menghendaki, ia segera membakar tumpukan karma baik dan buruknya yang laksana gunung. Dengan berlindung pada Yoga tertinggi, ia mencapai pembebasan.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Through disciplined one-pointed concentration (dhāraṇā) on key bodily and sensory loci, the yogin unites the subtle self with the Supreme Self; this realization and yogic absorption can rapidly destroy accumulated karma—both good and bad—and lead to liberation.
In the Śānti Parva’s instruction to the king, Bhīṣma continues his discourse on yoga and liberation, describing a yogic method of concentration and its ethical-spiritual result: the eradication of karmic burdens and attainment of mokṣa.