Shloka 37
Adhyātma–Adhibhūta–Adhidaivata Correspondences and the Triguṇa Lakṣaṇas (Śānti-parva 301)
ताराणां पतन दृष्ट्वा नक्षत्राणां च पर्ययम् । द्न्द्धानां विप्रयोगं च विज्ञाय कृपणं नूप,नरेश्वर! घोर उत्पात, चन्द्रग्रहण, सूर्यग्रहण, ताराओंका टूटकर गिरना, नक्षत्रोंकी गतिमें उलट-फेर होना तथा पति-पत्नियोंका दुःखदायक वियोग होना आदि बातें, जो इस जगतमें घटित होती हैं, उनको भी जानकर अपने कल्याणका उपाय करना चाहिये
tārāṇāṁ patanaṁ dṛṣṭvā nakṣatrāṇāṁ ca paryayam | dvandvānāṁ viprayogaṁ ca vijñāya kṛpaṇaṁ nṛpa naraśvara || ghora-utpāta-candra-grahaṇa-sūrya-grahaṇa-tārāṇāṁ tūṭakara-giranaṁ nakṣatrāṇāṁ gatiṣu ulṭa-pheraḥ pati-patnyoḥ duḥkhadāyaka-viyogaś ca—etāni jagati ghaṭamānāni jñātvā sva-kalyāṇasya upāyaṁ kartavyaḥ ||
Bhīṣma berkata: “Melihat bintang-bintang jatuh, menyaksikan kekacauan pada lintasan nakṣatra, dan menyadari perpisahan yang memilukan pada ikatan-ikatan berpasangan, wahai raja—wahai penguasa manusia—hendaknya seseorang memahami bahwa pertanda-pertanda mengerikan tengah terjadi di dunia: gerhana bulan dan matahari, bintang-bintang yang pecah lalu jatuh, pembalikan gerak nakṣatra, serta perpisahan suami-istri yang sarat duka. Mengetahui tanda-tanda itu, hendaknya ia menempuh upaya demi kesejahteraan dirinya.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhīṣma urges the king to read the world’s disturbances—cosmic irregularities and social ruptures—as warnings that life is unstable, and therefore to actively pursue one’s true welfare (kalyāṇa) through right conduct and prudent action rather than complacency.
In the Śānti Parva’s instruction to Yudhiṣṭhira, Bhīṣma lists ominous phenomena—eclipses, falling stars, altered stellar motions, and painful separations within human relationships—to impress upon the ruler the urgency of taking corrective, dharmic measures for personal and public well-being.