Shloka 13
Doṣa-Parīkṣā and Guṇa-Viveka
Examination of Faults and Discernment of the Guṇas
मनस्त्वपद्ठतं पूर्वमिन्द्रियार्थनिदर्शकम् । न समक्षगुणापेक्षि निर्गुणस्य निदर्शकम्,परंतु इन्द्रियोंके विषयोंको दिखानेवाला मन जब पहलेसे ही विषयोंकी ओर अपहृत हो जाता है, तब वह विषयरूप गुणोंकी अपेक्षा रखनेवाला मन निर्गुण तत्त्वका दर्शन करानेमें समर्थ नहीं होता
manas tv apahṛtaṁ pūrvam indriyārtha-nidarśakam | na samakṣa-guṇāpekṣi nirguṇasya nidarśakam ||
ビーシュマは言った。「感官の対象を指し示すはたらきをもつ心が、すでに前もってそれらの対象へと奪われているなら、そのとき無属性の実在（ニルグナ）を顕すことはできない。感官の対象の गुण（性質）に依存する心は、ニルグナの原理を直観する力を持たないのである。」
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
A mind habituated to sense-objects remains dependent on their qualities and therefore cannot disclose the attributeless (nirguṇa) Reality; inner withdrawal and mastery of the senses are prerequisites for higher realization.
In the Shanti Parva’s instruction on dharma and liberation, Bhishma continues advising Yudhishthira by explaining a psychological obstacle to spiritual knowledge: the mind, when already drawn outward by sensory engagement, is unfit to give direct insight into the nirguṇa principle.