Shloka 36
दैव–पुरुषकार-प्रश्नः
Daiva–Puruṣakāra Inquiry: Fate and Human Effort
शक्रस्योद्गम्य चरणं प्रस्थितो जनमेजय: । द्विजस्त्रीणां वध कृत्वा कि दैवेन न वारित:,राजा जनमेजय द्विज स्त्रियोंका वध करके इन्द्रके चरणका आश्रय ले जब स्वर्गलोकको प्रस्थित हुए, उस समय दैवने उसे आकर क्यों नहीं रोका
śakrasyodgamya caraṇaṃ prasthito janamejayaḥ | dvijastrīṇāṃ vadhaṃ kṛtvā kiṃ daivena na vāritaḥ ||
ภีษมะกล่าวว่า—เมื่อพระเจ้าชนเมชัยได้สังหารภรรยาของพราหมณ์แล้ว ก็ไปพึ่งพระบาทแห่งศักระและออกเดินทางสู่สวรรค์; ไฉนเล่า ‘ไทวะ’ จึงไม่มาห้ามปรามเขาในกาลนั้น?
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse raises a moral problem about responsibility: even when a grievous wrong is committed (killing Brahmin women), one cannot assume that “fate” will automatically stop the agent. The question presses the listener to reflect on human agency, accountability, and the complex timing of karmic consequences rather than expecting immediate divine intervention.
Bhīṣma, in instruction to the king, refers to Janamejaya’s act of killing the wives of Brahmins and his subsequent departure toward heaven under Indra’s protection. Bhīṣma asks rhetorically why daiva (providential fate) did not come at that moment to restrain him, highlighting the tension between royal power, moral transgression, and the (often delayed) operation of cosmic justice.