Mahabharata — Anushasana Parva, Shloka 14
Dvaipāyana–Kīṭa Saṃvāda: Karmic Memory, Fear of Death, and Embodied Pleasure
संस्कृतासंस्कृता: पक्वा लवणालवणास्तथा | प्रजायन्ते यथा भावास्तथा चित्त निरुध्यते
saṁskṛtāsaṁskṛtāḥ pakvā lavaṇālavaṇās tathā | prajāyante yathā bhāvās tathā cittaṁ nirudhyate ||
Wika ni Bhīṣma: “Ang karne ay nagkakaroon ng maraming anyo—may pampalasa o wala, luto, inasnan lamang, o hindi inasnan. Sa anumang anyo lumitaw ang mga kalagayang ito, ang isip ng kumakain ng karne ay napipirmi roon, hinihila ng pagkakaiba-iba ng lasa.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhīṣma highlights how sensory variety (different tastes and preparations) strengthens attachment: the mind becomes ‘held’ by what it repeatedly seeks for pleasure. The ethical point is that indulgence in taste can obstruct restraint and inner discipline.
In Anuśāsana Parva’s instruction-setting, Bhīṣma is teaching about conduct and restraint. Here he uses the example of meat prepared in multiple ways to illustrate how craving follows taste-variations and binds the mind.