Shloka 8
Adhyāya 177: Pañca-mahābhūta-vicāra and Vṛkṣa-jīva-lakṣaṇa
Five Elements Inquiry and the Status of Plant Life
आकिंचन्यं सुखं लोके पथ्यं शिवमनामयम् । अनमित्रपथो होष दुर्लभ: सुलभो मत:,'संसारमें अकिंचनता ही सुख है। वही हितकारक, कल्याणकारी और निरापद है। इस मार्गमें किसी प्रकारके शत्रुका भी खटका नहीं है। यह दुर्लभ होनेपर भी सुलभ है
ākiñcanyaṁ sukhaṁ loke pathyaṁ śivam anāmayam | anamitra-patho hy eṣa durlabhaḥ sulabho mataḥ ||
या संसारात अकिंचनताच सुख आहे; तेच पथ्य, शिव आणि अनामय आहे. या मार्गात शत्रूचीही भीती नाही; हा मार्ग दुर्लभ असूनही सुलभ मानला गेला आहे.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhishma teaches that ākiñcanya—living without possessiveness and accumulation—is a direct source of happiness and safety. It is ethically wholesome and reduces conflict because it does not provoke rivalry or enmity; although renunciation seems difficult, it is accessible through inner resolve and disciplined living.
In the Shanti Parva’s instruction on dharma and peace after the war, Bhishma continues advising Yudhishthira. Here he praises the renunciant disposition as a practical path to welfare—one that avoids social hostility and leads to a calmer, less harmful life.