Shloka 1
Adhyāya 177: Pañca-mahābhūta-vicāra and Vṛkṣa-jīva-lakṣaṇa
Five Elements Inquiry and the Status of Plant Life
(दाक्षिणात्य अधिक पाठके १६ शलोक मिलाकर कुल ४०३ श्लोक हैं) त्न्द्््ासस श्यु नाचज्ज्जभप्त्ज्स षट्सप्तरत्याधेकशततमो< ध्याय: त्यागकी महिमाके विषयमें शम्पाक ब्राह्णका उपदेश युधिछिर उवाच धनिनश्चाधना ये च वर्तयन्ते स्वतन्त्रिण: । सुखदुःखागमस्तेषां कः कथं वा पितामह
Yudhiṣṭhira uvāca | dhaninaś cādhanā ye ca vartayante svatantriṇaḥ | sukhaduḥkhāgamās teṣāṃ kaḥ kathaṃ vā pitāmaha ||
Yudhiṣṭhira berkata: “Wahai Datukanda, dalam kalangan mereka yang hidup berdikari—sama ada kaya atau miskin—oleh siapakah, dan bagaimanakah, datangnya pengalaman suka dan duka kepada mereka?”
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames a moral-philosophical inquiry into the causes of pleasure and pain: even for people who appear socially “independent,” what is the true agency behind their happiness and suffering—implying a discussion of karma, dharma, and the limits of worldly autonomy.
In the Śānti Parva dialogue, Yudhiṣṭhira addresses Bhīṣma as “Grandfather” and asks a probing question about human experience across economic conditions (rich and poor), setting up Bhīṣma’s instruction on renunciation (tyāga) and the deeper determinants of well-being.