Shloka 816
ब्राह्मणस्य पूर्वतरा वृत्तिः — The Earlier Ideal Conduct of a Brahmana
River-of-Saṃsāra Metaphor
नियतं कालपाशेन बद्ध॑ शक्र विकत्थसे । इन्द्र! यही कारण है कि मैं तुम्हारे सब अपराध चुपचाप सहे लेता हूँ। अब भी मेरा वेग तुम्हारे लिये अत्यन्त दुःसह है। किंतु जब समयने पलटा खाया है
niyataṁ kālapāśena baddhaḥ śakra vikatthase | indra! yahi kāraṇa hai ki maiṁ tumhāre sab aparādha chupcāp sahe letā hūṁ | ab bhī merā vega tumhāre liye atyanta duḥsaha hai | kiṁtu jab samaya ne palṭā khāyā hai, kālarūpī agni ne mujhe sab or se gher liyā hai aur maiṁ kālapāś se niścitarūp se baṁdh gayā hūṁ, tab tum mere sāmne khaṛe hokar apanī jhūṭhī baṛāī kiye jā rahe ho
Bhishma berkata: “Terikat kukuh oleh jerat Kala, wahai Shakra, engkau masih bermegah. Indra—itulah sebabnya aku diam-diam menanggung segala kesalahanmu. Bahkan kini pun dayaku amat sukar engkau tanggung; namun apabila arus waktu telah berbalik, apabila api bernama Kala mengepungku dari segala arah dan aku pasti terbelenggu oleh jerat Kala, engkau berdiri di hadapanku dan terus-menerus memuji diri dengan dusta.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Power and victory are not grounds for arrogance: Time (kāla) ultimately binds all beings. Ethical restraint includes forbearance toward others’ faults, yet boasting over someone weakened by fate is condemned as false self-glorification.
Bhishma addresses Indra (Shakra), rebuking him for boasting. Bhishma says he had endured Indra’s offenses earlier, and that even now his own might would be unbearable—yet the reversal of time has bound him in the ‘noose of Time,’ so Indra’s triumphal boasting is misplaced.