Shloka 44
अध्याय ५७ — राज्ञः नित्यप्रयत्नः, रक्षा-प्रधानता, तथा त्याग-नीतिः
Chapter 57: Constant Royal Vigilance, Primacy of Protection, and Principles of Dismissal
षडेतान् पुरुषो जह्याद् भिन्नां नावमिवार्णवे । अप्रवक्तारमाचार्यमनधीयानमृत्विजम्
ṣaḍ etān puruṣo jahyād bhinnāṃ nāvam ivārṇave | apravaktāram ācāryam anadhīyānam ṛtvijam ||
ਜਿਵੇਂ ਸਮੁੰਦਰ ਦੀ ਯਾਤਰਾ ਵਿੱਚ ਟੁੱਟੀ ਹੋਈ ਨੌਕਾ ਤਿਆਗ ਦਿੱਤੀ ਜਾਂਦੀ ਹੈ, ਤਿਵੇਂ ਮਨੁੱਖ ਨੂੰ ਇਹ ਛੇ ਤਿਆਗਣੇ ਚਾਹੀਦੇ ਹਨ: ਜੋ ਆਚਾਰਯ ਉਪਦੇਸ਼ ਨਾ ਦੇਵੇ, ਅਤੇ ਜੋ ਰਿਤਵਿਜ਼ ਵੇਦ ਮੰਤ੍ਰਾਂ ਦਾ ਅਧਿਐਨ/ਉਚਾਰਣ ਨਾ ਕਰੇ।
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Do not rely on people who fail at the essential duty of their role. A teacher must teach and a priest must properly recite/study the Veda; when they do not, association with them becomes dangerous or fruitless—like trusting a broken boat in the ocean.
In the Śānti Parva, Bhīṣma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on dharma and practical governance of life. Here he gives a proverbial rule: abandon dysfunctional supports, illustrated by the image of discarding a shattered boat at sea.