Shloka 43
Daṇḍa-svarūpa-nirūpaṇa
The Nature, Forms, and Function of Daṇḍa
सर्वान् कामान् कामयानो हि धीर: सत्त्वेनाल्पेनाप्रुते हीनदोष: । यश्षात्मान प्रार्थयते<र्थ्यमानै: श्रेय:पात्रं पूरयते च नाल्पम्
sarvān kāmān kāmayāno hi dhīraḥ sattvenālpenāprute hīna-doṣaḥ | yaś cātmānaṃ prārthayate 'rthyamānaiḥ śreyaḥ-pātraṃ pūrayate ca nālpam ||
Wika ni Bhishma: Kahit na hangarin ng isang matatag at mapagkilatis na tao ang lahat ng kaligayahan—kung siya’y walang dungis at di nadungisan, at sinusuportahan kahit ng munting kadalisayan sa loob—hindi siya nababawasan. Sa halip, kapag hinahanap niya ang tunay na kabutihan ng sarili sa gitna ng mga humihiling sa kanya para sa layuning makamundo, pinupuno niya ang sisidlan ng kabutihang-loob at kapakanan nang sagana, hindi maramot.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Desire by itself is not the final measure of a person; what matters is inner purity (sattva), freedom from corruption and faults, and a deliberate orientation toward śreyas (the higher good). Even amid worldly requests and pressures, the wise person who seeks the self’s true welfare accumulates abundant merit and well-being.
In the Shanti Parva’s instruction on dharma and right conduct, Bhishma continues advising Yudhishthira. Here he characterizes the dhīra (steadfast wise person): even if such a person moves among worldly desires and petitioners, his untainted nature and pursuit of śreyas make him a source and receptacle of great good rather than moral decline.