Shloka 97
ब्राह्मणस्य पूर्वतरा वृत्तिः — The Earlier Ideal Conduct of a Brahmana
River-of-Saṃsāra Metaphor
कालो न परिहार्यश्न न चास्यास्ति व्यतिक्रम: । “काल पुरातन (अनादि), सनातन, धर्मस्वरूप और समस्त प्राणियोंके प्रति समान दृष्टि रखनेवाला है। कालका किसीके द्वारा भी परिहार नहीं हो सकता और न उसका कोई उल्लड्घन ही कर सकता है ।।
Bhīṣma uvāca: Kālo na parihāryaś ca na cāsyāsti vyatikramaḥ. Ahorātrāṁś ca māsāṁś ca kṣaṇān kāṣṭhā lavān kalāḥ.
Bhīṣma berkata: “Kāla tidak dapat dielakkan, dan tidak dapat pula dilanggar. Ia mengukur serta mengalirkan hari dan malam, bulan-bulan, detik-detik, bahkan pembahagian masa yang paling halus.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Time (kāla) is inescapable and cannot be overruled; therefore one should abandon the illusion of control over inevitability and focus on dharmic action within the limited span that Time allots.
In the Shanti Parva instruction, Bhishma continues advising Yudhishthira on principles that govern life and conduct; here he emphasizes the irresistible power of Time, which moves all beings through measured durations from large cycles (days, months) to minute instants.