Shloka 203
अहिंसा-प्रधान धर्मविचारः
Ahiṃsā as the Superior Dharma: Practical and Scriptural Reasoning
अप्सु वर्षसहस्त्राणि सप्त चैकं च पार्थिव । राजन! तदनन्तर उसने उत्तम मौन-व्रत धारण कर लिया। पृथ्वीपते! फिर उसने जलमें आठ हजार वर्षोंतक रहकर तपस्या की
apsu varṣa-sahasrāṇi sapta caikaṃ ca pārthiva | rājan! tad-anantaraṃ sa uttamaṃ mauna-vrataṃ dhārayāmāsa | pṛthvīpate! punaḥ sa jale aṣṭa-sahasra-varṣāṇi sthitvā tapas tepe ||
Bhīṣma disse: “Ó rei, senhor da terra—ele permaneceu nas águas por sete mil e um anos. Depois, assumiu o voto supremo de silêncio (mauna). Em seguida, ó governante da terra, voltou a praticar austeridades, ficando na água por oito mil anos.”
पितामह उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the dharmic value of rigorous self-discipline: sustained tapas and the vow of silence (mauna) are portrayed as powerful ethical-spiritual practices that cultivate inner control, endurance, and purity of intention.
Bhīṣma narrates an episode in which a practitioner undertakes extreme austerities—remaining in water for thousands of years, then adopting a strict vow of silence, and again continuing penance in water for eight thousand years—illustrating the intensity of ascetic effort.