Śuka’s Guṇa-Transcendence and Vyāsa’s Consolation (शुकगति-वर्णनम्)
अहं कर्तेति चाप्यन्यो गुणस्तत्र चतुर्दश: । ममायमिति येनायं मनन््यते न ममेति च
ahaṃ karteti cāpy anyo guṇas tatra caturdaśaḥ | mamāyam iti yenāyaṃ manyate na mameti ca ||
Bhīṣma disse: “Há também outra qualidade ali—a décima quarta—chamada egoísmo (ahaṃkāra): a presunção ‘eu sou o agente’. Por ela, o ser encarnado forma as noções ‘isto é meu’ e ‘isto não é meu’.”
भीष्य उवाच
Egoism (ahaṃkāra)—the conceit ‘I am the doer’—drives possessiveness and division into ‘mine’ and ‘not mine.’ Recognizing this mechanism is a step toward ethical restraint and inner freedom from attachment.
In the Shanti Parva’s instruction, Bhishma continues his analysis of inner qualities, identifying egoism as a distinct factor that shapes how the individual self interprets actions and ownership.