Shloka 23

Adhyāya 159 — Dāna–Dakṣiṇā, Āpaddharma Measures, and Prāyaścitta Classifications

Devanagari script

येष्वावृत्तिभयं नास्ति परलोकभयं न च | नामिषेषु प्रसंगो5स्ति न प्रियेष्वप्रियेषु च,जिन्हें फिर संसारमें जन्म लेनेका भय नहीं है, परलोकसे भी भय नहीं है, जिनकी भोगोंमें आसक्ति नहीं है तथा प्रिय और अप्रियमें भी जिनका राग-द्वेष नहीं है

Transliteration

yeṣv āvṛttibhayaṁ nāsti paralokabhayaṁ na ca | nāmiṣeṣu prasaṅgo 'sti na priyeṣv apriyeṣu ca ||

Translation

ఎవరిలో పునర్జన్మ భయం లేదు, పరలోక భయం కూడా లేదు; భోగాలలో ఆసక్తి లేదు; మరియు ప్రియ-అప్రియాల పట్ల రాగద్వేషాలు లేవో—అటువంటి వారే (శిష్టులు).

Word by Word

येषुin whom / in which

आवृत्ति-भयम्fear of return (rebirth)

नnot

अस्तिis / exists

परलोक-भयम्fear of the next world

नnot

चand

नामिषेषुin pleasures / in sense-objects (lit. non-meat; here: enjoyments)

प्रसङ्गःattachment / involvement

अस्तिis / exists

नnot

प्रियेषुin the dear / in pleasant things

अप्रियेषुin the not-dear / in unpleasant things

चand

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

Bhīṣma

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

What is the core teaching?

Freedom is marked by fearlessness about rebirth and the afterlife, non-attachment to sensual enjoyments, and even-mindedness toward the pleasant and the unpleasant—i.e., the cessation of rāga-dveṣa (attachment-aversion).

What is happening in the narrative?

In Śānti Parva, Bhīṣma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on dharma and the path to inner peace after the war; here he describes the qualities of a liberated or spiritually mature person who is no longer driven by fear, craving, or emotional partiality.