Shloka 16
प्रजाविसर्ग-तत्त्वनिर्णयः | Cosmogony of Elemental Emergence
Bharadvāja–Bhṛgu Dialogue
को हि जानाति कस्याद्य मृत्युकालो भविष्यति । (न मृत्युरामन्त्रयते हर्तुकामो जगत्प्रभु: । अबुद्ध एवाक्रमते मीनान् मीनग्रहो यथा ।।
ko hi jānāti kasyādya mṛtyukālo bhaviṣyati | na mṛtyur āmantrayate hartukāmo jagatprabhuḥ | abuddha evākramate mīnān mīnagraho yathā || yuvāiva dharmaśīlaḥ syād anityaṃ khalu jīvitam | kṛte dharme bhavet kīrtir iha pretya ca vai sukham ||
को हि जानाति कस्याद्य मृत्युकालो भविष्यति । न मृत्युरामन्त्रयते हर्तुकामो जगत्प्रभुः । अबुद्ध एवाक्रमते मीनान् मीनग्रहो यथा ॥ युवैव धर्मशीलः स्यादनित्यं खलु जीवितम् । कृते धर्मे भवेत्कीर्तिरिह प्रेत्य च वै सुखम् ॥
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Because death can come at any moment and gives no prior warning, one should practice dharma without delay—especially while young—so that one gains honorable reputation in this life and well-being after death.
In the Śānti Parva’s instruction section, Bhīṣma advises the listener on ethical urgency: he uses the image of a fisherman suddenly catching fish to illustrate how death strikes unexpectedly, and he urges timely commitment to righteous living.