Shloka 15
श्रेयो-धर्मकर्मविचारः
Inquiry into Śreyas, Dharma, and Karma
तदेव बहुभिमर्माल्यैर्वास्यथमानं पुनः पुनः । विमुञज्चति स्वकं गन्धं माल्यगन्धे च तिष्ठति
tad eva bahubhir marmālyair vāsyathamānaṃ punaḥ punaḥ | vimuñcati svakaṃ gandhaṃ mālyagandhe ca tiṣṭhati ||
Wika ni Bhīṣma: “Ang mismong langis ng linga o ng mustasa, kapag paulit-ulit na pinabanguhan ng maraming mababangong kuwintas ng bulaklak, ay iniiwan ang likas nitong amoy at nananatili sa halimuyak ng mga bulaklak. Gayon din, ang bunton ng mga kapintasan na pinakikilos ng tatlong guṇa—sattva, rajas, at tamas—at pinatatag sa daan-daang kapanganakan sa pakikisama sa asawa, mga anak, at iba pa, ay maaaring mapawi sa pamamagitan ng pag-unawa at ng tuluy-tuloy na pagsisikap na isinilang mula sa disiplinadong pagsasanay.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Repeated association and sustained practice can transform one’s ingrained tendencies: just as oil repeatedly infused with floral scent relinquishes its own odor and takes on the garland’s fragrance, so too long-accumulated faults driven by the three guṇas can be reduced and ended through discernment (buddhi) and disciplined practice (abhyāsa) supported by deliberate effort (yatna).
In the Śānti Parva’s instruction on inner discipline and the workings of the guṇas, Bhīṣma addresses Yudhiṣṭhira using a concrete household analogy (oil absorbing perfume) to explain how deep-seated dispositions formed over many lives and reinforced by worldly attachments can nevertheless be altered through understanding and sustained spiritual-ethical effort.