Shloka 76
Varṇa-dharma and Rājadharma: Yudhiṣṭhira’s Inquiry and Bhīṣma’s Normative Outline (वर्णधर्म-राजधर्म-प्रश्नोत्तरम्)
उपकाराय लोकस्य त्रिवर्गस्थापनाय च । नवनीतं सरस्वत्या बुद्धिरेषा प्रभाविता,“देवगण! सम्पूर्ण जगत्के उपकार तथा धर्म, अर्थ एवं कामकी स्थापनाके लिये वाणीका सारभूत यह विचार यहाँ प्रकट किया गया
upakārāya lokasya trivargasthāpanāya ca | navanītaṃ sarasvatyā buddhir eṣā prabhāvitā, “devagaṇa! sampūrṇa jagat-ke upakāra tathā dharma, artha evaṃ kāma-kī sthāpanā-ke liye vāṇī-kā sārabhūtaṃ yaha vicāra yahāṃ prakaṭa kiyā gayā”
Bhishma berkata: “Demi kesejahteraan dunia, dan untuk menegakkan tiga tujuan hidup—dharma, artha, dan kāma—inti yang telah dimurnikan ini, yang diilhamkan oleh Sarasvatī, telah dikemukakan sebagai kebijaksanaan penuntun. Wahai para dewa, demi manfaat yang sempurna bagi seluruh alam dan demi tegaknya dharma, kemakmuran, serta hasrat yang wajar, nasihat yang tersuling ini—yakni sari pati tutur kata—telah dinyatakan di sini.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
That wise instruction should be offered for the welfare of all, and that social and personal order rests on establishing the three human aims—dharma (right conduct), artha (material well-being), and kāma (legitimate desire)—under the guidance of discerning, truth-oriented speech.
In Bhīṣma’s extended instruction in the Śānti Parva, he frames the counsel he is presenting as a distilled ‘essence’ inspired by Sarasvatī, addressed to a divine audience, and intended to benefit the whole world by grounding life in the balanced pursuit of dharma, artha, and kāma.