Shloka 25
ब्राह्मणस्य पूर्वतरा वृत्तिः — The Earlier Ideal Conduct of a Brahmana
River-of-Saṃsāra Metaphor
मा च ते5भूत् स्वभावो5यमिति ते देवपुड्भव । ईश्वर: सर्वभूतानां विक्रमेण जितो बलातू,इसलिये देवराज! तुम्हारा स्वभाव ऐसा न हो, तुम ऐसा न समझ लो कि मैंने अपने बल और पराक्रमसे ही समस्त प्राणियोंके स्वामी मुझ बलिपर विजय पायी है
mā ca te 'bhūt svabhāvo 'yam iti te devapuṅgava | īśvaraḥ sarvabhūtānāṁ vikrameṇa jito balāt ||
मा च तेऽभूत् स्वभावोऽयमिति ते देवपुङ्गव । ईश्वरः सर्वभूतानां विक्रमेण जितो बलात् ॥
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Power and heroism should not breed arrogance: the Lord who governs all beings is not genuinely ‘conquered’ by brute strength. The verse warns a divine ruler to remain humble and to recognize a higher sovereignty beyond personal prowess.
Bhishma addresses a ‘foremost of the gods’ (devapuṅgava, typically Indra) and cautions him against the thought that he has subdued the supreme Lord merely through his own might. It is a moral-theological correction aimed at restraining pride after apparent victory.