Shloka 17
Adhyāya 180: Jīva, Śarīra, and the Fire Analogy (भृगु–भरद्वाज संवादः)
दिवि संचरमाणानि हस्वानि च महान्ति च । ज्योतींष्यपि यथाकालं पतमानानि लक्षये,“आकाशमें जो छोटे-बड़े ज्योतिर्मय नक्षत्र विचर रहे हैं, उन्हें भी मैं यथासमय नीचे गिरते देखता हूँ
divi sañcaramāṇāni hrasvāni ca mahānti ca | jyotīṁṣy api yathākālaṁ patamānāni lakṣaye ||
ビーシュマは言った。「天に巡る光り輝くもの—小なるものも大なるものも—が動いているのを私は見る。さらに、その光そのものが、定められた時節に落ちてゆくのも見る。」
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
That even what seems most stable and exalted—celestial lights—follows the law of time: arising, moving, and eventually falling. The verse points toward vairāgya (detachment) and sober reflection on impermanence under Kāla.
Bhishma reports ominous observations: he notices stars or luminous celestial bodies moving in the sky and, at their destined times, falling. Such imagery functions as a sign of change and decline, reinforcing the gravity of the moment in his instruction.