Shloka 12
Adhyāya 179 — Bharadvāja’s Reductionist Inquiry into Jīva and Pañcabhūta Dissolution
इषुकारो नर: कश्चिदिषावासक्तमानस: । समीपेनापि गच्छन्तं राजानं नावबुद्धवान्
iṣukāro naraḥ kaścid iṣāv āsaktamānasaḥ | samīpenāpi gacchantaṃ rājānaṃ nāvabuddhavān |
Wika ni Bhīṣma: “Noon ay may isang tagagawa ng palaso, lalaking lubos na nakatuon ang isip sa kaniyang ginagawa. Kahit dumaan nang malapit ang hari, hindi man lamang niya napansin.” Binanggit ito upang ipakita ang lakas ng iisang-tuldok na pagtuon (ekāgratā): kapag ganap na natipon ang isip sa gawain, nawawalan ng kapangyarihan ang mga panggambala sa labas—kaya nagiging “guro” ang tao sa pamamagitan ng halimbawa.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches ekāgratā—single-pointed concentration. A mind fully absorbed in a chosen duty or practice becomes steady and undistracted, which is presented as a practical model for self-mastery and ethical discipline.
Bhishma narrates an example: an arrow-maker is so intent on crafting arrows that he fails to notice the king passing close by. This striking inattentiveness to external spectacle is used to highlight the depth of his focus.