Shloka 24
जनक–पराशर संवादः — वर्ण-गोत्र-धर्मविचारः
Janaka–Parāśara: Varṇa, Gotra, and Dharma Inquiry
सरितां सागरो भर्ता यथा वेलामिवोर्मिवान् | इति भावगता बुद्धिर्भावे मनसि वर्तते,जैसे सरिताओंका स्वामी समुद्र उत्ताल तरंगोंसे युक्त होनेपर भी अपनी तटभूमिका उल्लंघन नहीं करता है, उसी प्रकार सात्विक आदि भावोंसे युक्त बुद्धि तीनों गुणोंका उल्लंघन नहीं करती। भावनामय मनमें ही चक्कर लगाती रहती है
Bhīṣma uvāca | saritāṁ sāgaro bhartā yathā velām ivōrmivān | iti bhāvagatā buddhir bhāve manasi vartate ||
Bhishma berkata: “Seperti lautan, tuan bagi segala sungai—walau dipenuhi gelombang yang mengganas—tidak melampaui garis pantainya, demikian juga buddhi yang diwarnai oleh keadaan seperti sāttvika dan yang lain-lain tidak melanggar batas tiga guṇa. Ia terus berputar dalam minda yang terbina daripada kecenderungan-kecenderungan itu.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Even when the intellect is stirred by various inner moods (sāttvika, rājasa, tāmasa), it still functions within the limits set by the three guṇas; true discipline is to recognize these bounds and not be carried beyond them by agitation—like the ocean’s waves that do not cross the shore.
In the Śānti Parva’s instruction, Bhīṣma continues his discourse on inner governance and ethical steadiness, using a natural image (the ocean and its boundary) to explain how mind and intellect operate within the framework of the guṇas.