Shloka 10

Doṣa-Parīkṣā and Guṇa-Viveka

Examination of Faults and Discernment of the Guṇas

Devanagari script

यदा कर्मगुणैहीना बुद्धिर्मनसि वर्तते । तदा प्रज्ञायते ब्रह्म ध्यानयोगसमाधिना

Transliteration

yadā karmaguṇair hīnā buddhir manasi vartate | tadā prajñāyate brahma dhyānayogasamādhinā ||

Translation

Bhishma berkata: Apabila intelek (buddhi), bebas daripada sifat-sifat yang mengikat tindakan, berdiam teguh di dalam minda (manas), maka Brahman disedari—melalui kekhusyukan mendalam dalam meditasi, yoga, dan samādhi.

Word by Word

यदाwhen

कर्मगुणैःby qualities of action (karmic qualities)

हीनाdevoid (of)

बुद्धिःintellect, understanding

मनसिin the mind

वर्ततेabides, remains, functions

तदाthen

प्रज्ञायतेis known/realized

ब्रह्मBrahman, the Absolute

ध्यानयोगसमाधिनाby the meditative-yoga samadhi (concentration)

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

Bhīṣma

Brahman

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?

Realization of Brahman becomes possible when the intellect is no longer driven by the binding qualities that propel action and desire; through meditative discipline culminating in samādhi, the mind becomes steady and direct knowledge arises.

What is happening in the narrative?

In Śānti Parva, Bhīṣma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on liberation-oriented dharma. Here he describes an inner condition—buddhi purified of action-impulses—and states that, through dhyāna-yoga leading to samādhi, Brahman is directly realized.