Shloka 49
ब्राह्मणस्य पूर्वतरा वृत्तिः — The Earlier Ideal Conduct of a Brahmana
River-of-Saṃsāra Metaphor
तानिदानीं न पश्यामि यैर्भुक्तेयं पुरा मही । जिन लोगोंने पहले वृक्ष, ओषधि, रत्न, जीव-जन्तु, वन और खानोंसहित इस सारी पृथ्वीका उपभोग किया है, उन सबको मैं इस समय नहीं देखता हूँ ।।
bhīṣma uvāca | tān idānīṃ na paśyāmi yair bhukteyaṃ purā mahī | pṛthur ailomayo bhīmo narakaḥ śambaras tathā | kālenābhyāhatāḥ sarve kālo hi balavattaraḥ |
ビーシュマは言った。「いまや、かつてこの大地を享受し支配した者たちを、私は見ない。プṛトゥ、イラーの子プルールヴァス、マヤ、ビー マ、ナラカ、そしてシャンバラも――彼らは皆、時（カーラ）に打ち倒された。時こそが、より強大な力だからだ。」この省察によりビーシュマは、最も恐るべき支配者でさえ消え去ることを示し、王権と驕りへの執着を離れ、移ろう覇権にすがるのではなくダルマに従って生きよと諭す。
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even the greatest rulers and mighty beings who once possessed the earth are no longer seen; Time overpowers all. Therefore one should not be intoxicated by power or possession, but live aligned with dharma, knowing sovereignty and worldly enjoyment are transient.
In Śānti Parva, Bhishma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on governance and dharma. Here he illustrates his counsel by listing renowned ancient figures who once dominated the world but were all carried away by Time, emphasizing the inevitability of decline and death.