Shloka 104
ब्राह्मणस्य पूर्वतरा वृत्तिः — The Earlier Ideal Conduct of a Brahmana
River-of-Saṃsāra Metaphor
Devanagari script
ईरष्याभिमानलोभेषु कामक्रोधभयेषु च
Transliteration
īrṣyābhimānalobheṣu kāmakrodhabhayeṣu ca
Translation
ईर्ष्याभिमानलोभेषु कामक्रोधभयेषु च । एतेषु जागरूकः स्यात् धर्ममार्गात् न हीयते ॥
Word by Word
ईरष्याin envy/jealousy
ईरष्या:
Adhikarana
TypeNoun
Rootईरष्या
FormFeminine, Locative, Singular
अभिमानin pride/egoism
अभिमान:
Adhikarana
TypeNoun
Rootअभिमान
FormMasculine, Locative, Singular
लोभेषुin greed(s)
लोभेषु:
Adhikarana
TypeNoun
Rootलोभ
FormMasculine, Locative, Plural
कामin desire
काम:
Adhikarana
TypeNoun
Rootकाम
FormMasculine, Locative, Singular
क्रोधin anger
क्रोध:
Adhikarana
TypeNoun
Rootक्रोध
FormMasculine, Locative, Singular
भयेषुin fear(s)
भयेषु:
Adhikarana
TypeNoun
Rootभय
FormNeuter, Locative, Plural
चand
च:
TypeIndeclinable
Rootच
Speaker
भीष्म उवाच
Character Dynamics
Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)
War Context
Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)
Philosophical Teaching
Political Layer
Geographic Context
Meter (Chandas)
Sandhi Notes
Educational Q&A
Bhīṣma highlights key inner vices—jealousy, pride, greed, desire, anger, and fear—as major disruptors of discernment; ethical life (dharma) requires recognizing and restraining these impulses before they drive harmful speech and action.
In the Śānti Parva’s instruction to Yudhiṣṭhira, Bhīṣma continues a didactic sequence on right conduct and mental discipline, listing emotional states that commonly cause a person to deviate from dharma.