Shloka 89
ब्राह्मणस्य पूर्वतरा वृत्तिः — The Earlier Ideal Conduct of a Brahmana
River-of-Saṃsāra Metaphor
सवज़मुद्यतं बाहुं दृष्टवा पाशांश्व वारुणान्,'दैत्यराज! मेरे हाथको वज्र एवं वरुणपाशसहित ऊपर उठा देखकर मारनेकी इच्छासे आयी हुई मृत्युका भी दिल दहल जाता है; फिर दूसरा कौन है जिसकी बुद्धि व्यथित न हो। तुम्हारी बुद्धि तत्वको जाननेवाली और स्थिर है; इसलिये तनिक भी विचलित नहीं होती है
savajram udyataṃ bāhuṃ dṛṣṭvā pāśāṃś ca vāruṇān | daityarāja! mama bāhuṃ vajra-varuṇapāśa-sahitam ūrdhvaṃ kṛtvā hantum icchayāgatāyā mṛtyor api hṛdayaṃ kampate; punaḥ kaḥ sa anyaḥ yasya buddhir na vyathate | tava buddhis tattva-jñāna-yuktā sthirā ca; tasmāt sā kṣaṇam api na vicalati ||
Bhīṣma disse: “Ó rei dos Daityas! Quando a própria Morte vem com intenção de matar, até ela estremece ao ver meu braço erguido, portando o vajra e os laços de Varuṇa. Quem, então, não teria a mente abalada? Mas o teu entendimento é firme e enraizado no conhecimento da realidade; por isso não vacila nem por um instante.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
True steadiness comes from tattva-jñāna—clear knowledge of reality. External threats that shake ordinary minds need not disturb one whose intellect is disciplined and rooted in truth.
Bhishma addresses a Daitya-king, describing the terrifying power of his raised arm armed with vajra and Varuṇa’s nooses—so formidable that even personified Death would tremble—then praises the Daitya-king for remaining unshaken due to his stable, truth-knowing intellect.