Shloka 4
इन्द्र–बलि संवादः
The Dialogue of Indra and Bali on Fortune, Humility, and Restraint
अत्राह को न्वयं भाव: स्वप्ने विषयवानिव । प्रलीनैरिन्द्रियैदेही वर्तते देहवानिव
atrāha ko nv ayaṃ bhāvaḥ svapne viṣayavān iva | pralīnair indriyaiḥ dehī vartate dehavān iva ||
Bhishma berkata: “Di sini timbul suatu keraguan: apakah kedudukan pengalaman dalam mimpi yang tampak seolah-olah mempunyai objek nyata? Dalam mimpi, pancaindera larut (tidak berfungsi), namun diri yang berjasad bertingkah seakan-akan memiliki tubuh dan bergerak di antara objek-objek indera. Maka mimpi itu bukan semata-mata nyata dan bukan pula semata-mata tidak nyata; persoalan ini dikemukakan untuk menjelaskan hakikat pengalaman dan diri.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames a philosophical problem: in dream, experiences appear object-filled and embodied, even though the senses are inactive. This challenges simple labels of ‘real’ or ‘unreal’ and prepares the ground for inquiry into how consciousness constructs experience and what the self is apart from sensory operation.
In the Shanti Parva’s instruction on liberation-oriented wisdom, Bhishma introduces (or reports) a pūrvapakṣa-style doubt: if dream-objects are not present and the senses are merged, how does the experiencer still act as if embodied? The question sets up the subsequent resolution about the nature of perception, mind, and the self.