Shloka 18
Doṣa-Parīkṣā and Guṇa-Viveka
Examination of Faults and Discernment of the Guṇas
अव्यक्तस्येह विज्ञाने नास्ति तुल्यं निदर्शनम् । यत्र नास्ति पदन््यास: कस्तं विषयमाप्नुयात्,उस अव्यक्त ब्रह्मका बोध करानेके लिये इस संसारमें कोई योग्य दृष्टान्त नहीं है। जहाँ वाणीका व्यापार ही नहीं है, उस वस्तुको कौन वर्णनका विषय बना सकता है
avyaktasya iha vijñāne nāsti tulyaṃ nidarśanam | yatra nāsti padanyāsaḥ kas taṃ viṣayam āpnuyāt ||
Bhīṣma berkata: “Di dunia ini, apabila seseorang berusaha memahami Yang Tidak Termanifest (Avyakta), tiada perumpamaan yang sebanding. Di tempat yang bahkan kata-kata pun tidak mendapat pijakan, siapakah dapat menjadikan hakikat itu suatu perkara untuk dihuraikan?”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The Unmanifest reality cannot be adequately conveyed through examples or language; it is beyond the ordinary reach of conceptualization and verbal description, and is to be approached through direct realization rather than analogy.
In Śānti Parva’s instruction on dharma and liberation, Bhīṣma continues his philosophical teaching, emphasizing to the listener that the highest principle (the Unmanifest) lies beyond the domain of speech and illustrative comparison.