Shloka 13

Varṇa-lakṣaṇa and Ātma-saṃyama (Marks of Social Conduct and Self-Restraint) | वर्णलक्षणम् एवं आत्मसंयमः

Devanagari script

सम्मानश्चावमानश्ष लाभालाभौ क्षयोदयौ । प्रवृत्ता विनिवर्तन्ते विधानान्ते पुनः पुन:

Transliteration

sammānaś cāvamānaś ca lābhālābhau kṣayodayau | pravṛttā vinivartante vidhānānte punaḥ punaḥ ||

Translation

Bhishma berkata: “Kehormatan dan kehinaan, untung dan rugi, surut dan bangkit—apabila telah bergerak, keadaan-keadaan ini berulang kali berbalik semula apabila perjalanan yang ditetapkan sampai ke penghujungnya. Maka janganlah goyah oleh pertentangan duniawi; tetaplah teguh dalam dharma, kerana turun naik itu bersifat kitaran dan ditadbir oleh aturan segala sesuatu.”

Word by Word

सम्मानःhonour

चand

अवमानःdishonour

लाभालाभौgain and non-gain (loss)

क्षयोदयौdecline and rise

प्रवृत्ताःhaving arisen / set in motion

विनिवर्तन्तेturn back / cease / return

विधानान्तेat the end of the dispensation/ordained course

पुनःagain

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

Bhishma

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Worldly opposites—honor/dishonor, gain/loss, decline/rise—are not permanent. They recur in cycles and reverse when their allotted course ends; hence one should cultivate steadiness and not abandon dharma due to changing external conditions.

What is happening in the narrative?

In the Shanti Parva’s instruction section, Bhishma continues advising Yudhishthira on righteous conduct and mental steadiness after the war, emphasizing that social and material fortunes fluctuate according to the ordained order and should not disturb one’s ethical resolve.