Shloka 743
ब्राह्मणस्य पूर्वतरा वृत्तिः — The Earlier Ideal Conduct of a Brahmana
River-of-Saṃsāra Metaphor
कि कत्थसे मां कि च त्वं कालेन निरपत्रप: । इन्द्र! हम कैसे हैं
kiṁ katthase māṁ kiṁ ca tvaṁ kālena nirapatrapaḥ | indra! vayaṁ kīdṛśāḥ sma iti tvam eva suṣṭhu jānāsi | vāsava! ahaṁ tvāṁ bhṛśaṁ jānāmi; tathāpi tvaṁ lajjāṁ tilāñjaliṁ dattvā mama purato vṛthā ātmaślāghāṁ kim iti karoṣi | vastutaḥ kāla eva etat sarvaṁ kārayati |
Bhishma berkata: “Mengapa engkau bermegah di hadapanku, dan mengapa engkau—tanpa malu di bawah paksaan Kala—berkata demikian? Wahai Indra, engkau mengetahui benar bagaimana adanya kami. Wahai Vasava, aku juga mengenalmu sepenuhnya; namun engkau membuang rasa segan dan memuji diri dengan sia-sia di hadapanku. Sesungguhnya, Kala semata-matalah yang menyebabkan semua ini terjadi.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Pride and self-glorification are ethically hollow; one should retain modesty and recognize that outcomes are often driven by Kāla (Time/fate), not merely personal prowess.
Bhishma rebukes Indra for boasting. He reminds Indra that both know each other’s true nature and that Indra’s shameless self-praise is pointless, because the larger force of Time is what is bringing events to pass.