Shloka 52
Devaśarmā–Vipula Dialogue on Ahorātra–Ṛtu as Moral Witnesses (अनुशासन पर्व, अध्याय ४३)
निर्मुक्तस्य रजोरूपान्नापराधो भवेन्मम | यथा हि शून्यां पथिक: सभामध्यावसेत् पथि
nirmuktasya rajorūpān nāparādho bhaven mama | yathā hi śūnyāṃ pathikaḥ sabhāmadhyāvased pathi |
Бхишма сказал: «Поскольку я освобождён от проявлений раджаса (страсти и смятения), никакая вина не может пасть на меня. Как путник на дороге может без привязанности остановиться в пустом постоялом дворе, так и я — оставаясь бдительным — войду и пребуду в теле супруги учителя, так, чтобы моё пребывание там было возможно.»
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Freedom from rajas (passionate agitation) is presented as a safeguard against ethical fault: when action is undertaken without desire, possessiveness, or self-serving impulse, it is less likely to generate culpability. The verse uses an analogy of a traveler resting briefly in an empty place to illustrate non-attachment and temporary, duty-bound presence.
Bhishma explains his intention to enter and reside in another’s body—specifically the guru’s wife—while claiming inner detachment and vigilance. He frames this extraordinary act as ethically non-culpable due to his freedom from rajas, likening it to a traveler taking temporary shelter without ownership or attachment.