Shloka 22
Brāhmaṇa-kṛtya, Āśrama-niyama, and Dāna-prasaṃsā
Duties of the Brāhmaṇa, āśrama discipline, and praise of giving
लब्धव्यान्येव लभते गन्तव्यान्येव गच्छति । प्राप्तव्यान्येव चाप्रोति दुःखानि च सुखानि च
labdhavyāny eva labhate gantavyāny eva gacchati | prāptavyāny eva cāprōti duḥkhāni ca sukhāni ca ||
ഭീഷ്മൻ പറഞ്ഞു— മനുഷ്യൻ ലഭിക്കേണ്ടതുതന്നെ ലഭിക്കുന്നു; പോകേണ്ടിടത്തേക്കുതന്നെ പോകുന്നു; അവനായി നിശ്ചയിക്കപ്പെട്ട ദുഃഖങ്ങളും സുഖങ്ങളും തന്നെയവൻ അനുഭവിക്കുന്നു.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
That the outcomes one meets—gain, movement through life, and the experience of pleasure and pain—unfold according to what has already matured as prārabdha (ripened karma). The ethical implication is to remain steady and righteous, not intoxicated by success nor broken by suffering.
In the Shanti Parva’s instruction on dharma and right living, Bhishma is teaching the listener about the power of destiny/karma in shaping human experience, framing life’s events as the fruition of what is already allotted.