Shloka 973
ब्राह्मणस्य पूर्वतरा वृत्तिः — The Earlier Ideal Conduct of a Brahmana
River-of-Saṃsāra Metaphor
सम्पीडयति य: कालो वृद्धि वार्धुषिको यथा । जैसे ऋण देनेवाला पुरुष व्याजका हिसाब जोड़कर ऋण लेनेवालोंको तंग करता है
sampīḍayati yaḥ kālo vṛddhi-vārdhuṣiko yathā |
Bhīṣma bersabda: Masa menindas makhluk hidup seperti pemberi pinjaman yang mengira faedah dan faedah berganda lalu menekan si peminjam. Demikian juga, Masa menyimpan kiraan tanpa belas—siang dan malam, bulan-bulan, detik-detik dan ukuran yang lebih halus lagi—lalu menekan makhluk dengan beban dan derita yang tidak putus-putus.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Time is inexorable and continually diminishes life; like a lender adding interest, it keeps adding up moments and thereby burdens beings. The teaching encourages vigilance, detachment, and ethical discipline in the face of inevitable decay.
In Bhīṣma’s instruction during the Śānti Parva, he uses a social analogy familiar to listeners—an interest-taking moneylender—to explain how Kāla relentlessly ‘accounts’ for time-units and thereby afflicts all creatures.