Shloka 19
Mokṣa–Saṃnyāsa–Tyāga–Guṇa-Vibhāga (Renunciation, Relinquishment, and the Three Guṇas) — Mahābhārata 6, Bhīṣma-parva
प्रकृति] और पुरुष, इन दोनोंको ही तू अनादि जानः और राग-द्वेषादि विकारोंको तथा त्रिगुणात्मक सम्पूर्ण पदार्थोंको भी प्रकृतिसे ही उत्पन्न जान
prakṛtiṁ ca puruṣaṁ caiva viddhy anādī ubhāv api | vikārāṁś ca guṇāṁś caiva viddhi prakṛti-sambhavān ||
Arjuna disse: Sabe que tanto Prakṛti (a natureza material) quanto Puruṣa (o Eu consciente) são sem começo. E sabe que todas as modificações—como apego e aversão—e todas as coisas constituídas pelos três guṇas nascem de Prakṛti.
अजुन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Both Prakṛti (nature) and Puruṣa (conscious self) are beginningless; however, the changing states—emotions like attachment and aversion, and all guṇa-made phenomena—originate from Prakṛti. This supports ethical discernment: do not mistake transient, guṇa-driven impulses for the true self.
In the Bhīṣma Parva’s philosophical instruction setting, Arjuna speaks while seeking clarity about the constituents of existence. He articulates a Sāṅkhya-like distinction between the self (Puruṣa) and nature (Prakṛti), locating psychological reactions and worldly change within Prakṛti.