Shloka 10
नाप्राप्तकालो म्रियते विद्ध: शरशतैरपि । तृणाग्रेणापि संस्पृष्ट: प्राप्तकालो न जीवति
nāprāptakālo mriyate viddhaḥ śaraśatair api | tṛṇāgreṇāpi saṃspṛṣṭaḥ prāptakālo na jīvati ||
Yudhiṣṭhira berkata: “Seseorang yang belum tiba saat kematiannya tidak akan mati, walaupun ditembusi ratusan anak panah. Tetapi apabila waktunya telah datang, dia tidak akan hidup walau hanya disentuh hujung sehelai rumput.”
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
Life and death are ultimately governed by kāla (the appointed time): without the arrival of one’s destined end, even severe injury may not kill; once that time arrives, even a trivial cause can become fatal. The teaching encourages humility about human control and steadiness in dharmic action despite uncertainty.
Yudhiṣṭhira articulates a general principle about mortality using vivid war imagery (hundreds of arrows) contrasted with a trivial touch (a blade of grass). In the Anuśāsana context, such statements typically support instruction on conduct, endurance, and accepting outcomes under the larger order of Time.