Shloka 39
Adhyātma–Adhibhūta–Adhidaivata Correspondences and the Triguṇa Lakṣaṇas (Śānti-parva 301)
रागे मोहे च सम्प्राप्ते क्वचित् सत्त्वं समाश्रितम् सहस्रेषु नर: वश्रिन्मोक्षबुद्धि समाश्रित:
rāge mohe ca samprāpte kvacit sattvaṃ samāśritam | sahasreṣu naraḥ kaścin mokṣa-buddhiṃ samāśritaḥ ||
ビーシュマは言った。欲（ラ―ガ）と迷い（モーハ）が起これば、清明と善（サットヴァ）に依り処を求める者はまことに稀である。幾千の人のうち、ただ一人の卓越した者のみが、解脱へ向かう理解を抱く。輪廻のうちに生きものが互いを餌とし、幼少は執着に覆われ、老いは身の不吉な崩壊をもたらすのを見て、かく省みよ――欲と迷いより多くの過失が生まれる。これを知る賢者は、束縛を超える道を求めるのである。
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Passion (rāga) and delusion (moha) generate many faults and keep beings bound in saṃsāra; therefore one should cultivate sattva (clarity) and develop mokṣa-buddhi—an intellect aimed at liberation. Such liberative discernment is rare, found only in exceptional individuals among many.
In the Shanti Parva’s instruction on dharma and liberation, Bhishma addresses Yudhishthira with reflective counsel: observing the harshness of worldly life and the inevitability of aging and bodily decay, he emphasizes how few people rise above attachment and delusion to pursue liberation.