Shloka 13
Adhyāya 179 — Bharadvāja’s Reductionist Inquiry into Jīva and Pañcabhūta Dissolution
बहूनां कलहो नित्य द्वयो: संकथन ध्रुवम् । एकाकी विचरिष्यामि कुमारीशंखको यथा
bahūnāṁ kalaho nityaṁ dvayoḥ saṅkathanaṁ dhruvam | ekākī vicariṣyāmi kumārī-śaṅkhako yathā ||
Wika ni Bhīṣma: “Kapag marami ang magkakasama, araw-araw na sumisibol ang alitan; at kahit dalawa lamang, di maiiwasan ang usapan. Kaya ako’y maglalakbay nang mag-isa—gaya ng iisang pulseras na kabibe (conch) sa kamay ng isang dalagang walang asawa.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Bhishma highlights how social proximity easily breeds distraction and conflict: in crowds, quarrel is frequent; even with just two, conversation pulls the mind outward. The ethical counsel is to value solitude when seeking inner steadiness, restraint, and freedom from needless contention.
In Shanti Parva’s instruction on dharma and conduct, Bhishma voices a resolve for solitary wandering. He uses a vivid simile: a single conch bangle on an unmarried maiden’s hand makes no clinking sound, suggesting that aloneness reduces friction and disturbance.