Arjuna’s request to Krishna and the opening of the Kāśyapa–Brāhmaṇa mokṣa discourse (Āśvamedhika-parva 16)
मातरो विविधा दृष्टा: पितरश्न पृथग्विधा: । सुखानि च विचित्राणि दुःखानि च मयानघ
mātaro vividhā dṛṣṭāḥ pitaraś ca pṛthagvidhāḥ | sukhāni ca vicitrāṇi duḥkhāni ca mayānagha ||
Disse o Siddha: “Vi muitas espécies de mães e de pais, cada qual de disposição diferente. Também experimentei alegrias de muitos tipos, e do mesmo modo tristezas—ó tu, sem pecado.”
सिद्ध उवाच
The verse underscores the diversity and instability of worldly life: family relations and life experiences vary widely, and one encounters many forms of pleasure and pain. Ethically, it points toward maturity and detachment—recognizing that such fluctuations are part of embodied existence rather than grounds for pride, despair, or adharma.
A Siddha addresses a ‘blameless’ listener and speaks from lived observation, summarizing how he has witnessed many different kinds of parents and undergone varied joys and sorrows. This functions as reflective counsel within the Ashvamedhika Parva’s broader moral-discursive passages.