Shloka 3
अध्याय १७८ — प्राणवायुगतिः तथा शारीराग्निव्यवस्था
Adhyāya 178 — The courses of prāṇa-vāyu and the regulation of the bodily fire
एतान्येव पदान्याहु: पड्च वृद्धा: प्रशान्तये । एष स्वर्गश्न धर्मश्व सुखं चानुत्तमं मतम्,ज्ञानवृद्ध पुरुष इन्हीं पाँच वस्तुओंको शान्तिका कारण बताते हैं। यही स्वर्ग है, यही धर्म है और यही परम उत्तम सुख माना गया है
etāny eva padāny āhuḥ pañca vṛddhāḥ praśāntaye | eṣa svargaś ca dharmaś ca sukhaṁ cānuttamaṁ matam ||
Bhīṣma disse: “Estes mesmos cinco ‘passos’ (princípios) são declarados pelos sábios anciãos como a causa da paz interior. Isto mesmo é o céu; isto mesmo é o dharma; e isto é tido como a felicidade suprema.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhīṣma equates ethical practice that produces inner tranquility with the highest human goals: it is ‘heaven’ in lived experience, it is dharma in action, and it yields the supreme happiness. The verse emphasizes that peace is not merely a result but a defining mark of true dharma.
In Śānti Parva, Bhīṣma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on dharma after the war. Here he cites the authority of elders, stating that a set of five guiding ‘steps’ (mentioned in the surrounding verses) are taught as the means to attain calmness, and he frames them as the essence of heaven, righteousness, and highest joy.