Shloka 4
दमप्रशंसा — Praise of Self-Restraint
Dama
क्रोधात् काममवाप्याथ लो भमोहौ च मानवा: । मानदर्पावहड़्कारमहड्कारात् तत:ः क्रिया:,क्रोधसे काम उत्पन्न होता है और फिर कामसे मनुष्य लोभ, मोह, मान, दर्प एवं अहंकारको प्राप्त होते हैं। तत्पश्चात् अहंकारसे प्रेरित होकर ही उनकी सारी क्रियाएँ होने लगती हैं
Bhīṣma uvāca: krodhāt kāmam avāpya atha lobha-mohau ca mānavāḥ | māna-darpāv ahaṅkāram ahaṅkārāt tataḥ kriyāḥ ||
Disse Bhīṣma: Da ira nasce o desejo; e do desejo, as pessoas caem na cobiça e na ilusão, e também no amor-próprio, na arrogância e no egoísmo. Depois disso, movidas pelo ego, todas as suas ações seguem adiante.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhishma outlines a moral-psychological chain: anger gives rise to desire; desire breeds greed and delusion; these foster pride, arrogance, and egoism; and ego then becomes the driver of one’s actions. The teaching urges restraint at the earliest stage—checking anger—to prevent the cascade into unethical conduct.
In the Shanti Parva’s instruction on dharma and right conduct, Bhishma is advising (as a moral teacher) by analyzing how inner passions develop and how they shape behavior. This verse is part of a didactic sequence explaining the origins of harmful action.