Shloka 13
Śvetadvīpa-varṇana and Śāstra-pravartana (Śānti Parva 322)
सम्मानश्चावमानश्ष लाभालाभौ क्षयोदयौ । प्रवृत्ता विनिवर्तन्ते विधानान्ते पदे पदे,सम्मान-अपमान, लाभ-हानि तथा उन्नति-अवनति--ये पूर्वजन्मके कर्मोके अनुसार पग-पगपर प्राप्त होते हैं और प्रारब्धभोगके पश्चात् पुनः निवृत्त हो जाते हैं
bhīṣma uvāca | sammānaś cāvamānaś ca lābhālābhau kṣayodayau | pravṛttā vinivartante vidhānānte pade pade ||
Disse Bhishma: Honra e desonra, ganho e perda, declínio e ascensão—tudo isso torna a surgir a cada passo, conforme a ordem estabelecida, moldada pelos atos de vidas anteriores. Depois que o fruto destinado é experimentado, tudo volta a aquietar-se. Portanto, não se deve abalar por tais coisas, mas permanecer firme no dharma.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Worldly opposites—honor/dishonor, gain/loss, rise/decline—are transient and unfold according to the ordained course shaped by past actions. Since they end after their destined fruition, one should cultivate steadiness and not let them disturb one’s commitment to dharma.
In the Śānti Parva, Bhishma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on righteous living after the war. Here he emphasizes a practical ethical stance: do not be elated by success or crushed by setbacks, because such conditions repeatedly arise and pass away as part of the karmic order.