Shloka 9
उशनसः (शुक्रस्य) चरितम् — The Account of Uśanā (Śukra): Yoga, Grievance, and Pacification
यथाजञ्जनमयो वायु: पुनर्मान:शिलं रज: । अनुप्रविश्य तद्वर्णो दृश्यते रज्जयन् दिश:
yathāñjanamayo vāyuḥ punarmānaḥśilaṃ rajaḥ | anupraviśya tadvarṇo dṛśyate rajjayan diśaḥ ||
Ipinaliwanag ni Bhishma sa isang matingkad na paghahambing: “Gaya ng hanging may dalang dilim na wari’y pulbos ng koliryo, kapag pumasok sa pulang-dilaw na alikabok ng realgar, nakikitang tinatanggap nito ang gayong kulay at tinatanglawan ang mga dako habang dumaraan; gayon din ang sarili—na likas na walang kulay at walang tiyak na katangian—kapag natakpan ng kamangmangan na tamas at nabahiran ng bunga ng gawa, ay waring nag-aangkin ng mga ‘kulay’ na iyon, tinatanggap ang sari-saring katangian ng mga buhay na may katawan, at gumagala sa mga katawan ng lahat ng nilalang.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The self is intrinsically unqualified and unstained, but due to ignorance (tamas/avidyā) and the residual effects of karma, it appears to take on the qualities of the bodies it inhabits—much like wind seeming colored by the dust it passes through.
In Shanti Parva’s instruction, Bhishma is teaching about the mechanism of bondage: how the jīva, though essentially pure, seems to acquire ‘colors’ (attributes) through contact with ignorance and karmic results, thereby moving through various embodied states.