शूद्रो5हं नाधिकारो मे चातुराश्रम्यसेवने । इति विज्ञानमपरे नात्मन्युपदधत्युत
śūdro ’haṃ nādhikāro me cāturāśramya-sevane | iti vijñānam apare nātmany upadadhaty uta ||
ビーシュマは言った。「ある者は『私はシュードラである。ゆえに梵行など四つのアーシュラマを修する資格はない』と思う。だが真に徳ある“二度生まれ(ドヴィジャ)”は、そのような欺きの自己限定を心に宿さない。」
भीष्म उवाच
The verse critiques a defeatist or self-excluding belief—“I have no right to spiritual discipline”—and suggests that the virtuous do not take refuge in such inner excuses. Ethically, it points toward sincerity and responsibility in pursuing dharma rather than hiding behind identity-based pretexts.
In Bhīṣma’s instruction on dharma, he comments on how some people interpret social status as barring them from āśrama-based practices, while praising the truly good (here described as virtuous dvijas) for not entertaining such inner ‘chala’—a deceptive rationalization.