Shloka 30
एकान्तिधर्म-प्रश्नः (Inquiry into Ekāntin Dharma) / The Origin and Practice of Single-Pointed Nārāyaṇa-Centered Discipline
सप्त प्रकृतयो होतास्तथा स्वायम्भुवोडष्टम: । एताभिर्धार्यते लोकस्ताभ्य: शास्त्र विनि:सृतम्
saptaprakṛtayo hotās tathā svāyambhuvo ’ṣṭamaḥ | etābhir dhāryate lokas tābhyaḥ śāstra-viniḥsṛtam ||
Wika ni Bhishma: “May pitong pangunahing sangkap (prakṛti), at ang ikawalo ay si Svāyambhuva (Brahmā). Sa pamamagitan ng mga ito ay naitataguyod ang daigdig, at mula sa kanila ay lumitaw ang mga aral na may kapangyarihan (śāstra). Ang mga pantas na ito ay iisa ang diwa, may pagpipigil-sa-sarili, deboto sa disiplina, nakaaalam ng nakaraan, hinaharap, at kasalukuyan, at matatag sa katotohanan at dharma.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The cosmos is sustained by fundamental principles (seven prakṛtis) together with the self-born creator (Svāyambhuva/Brahmā), and normative knowledge (śāstra) is presented as emanating from these foundational sources; true sages embody restraint, self-mastery, and commitment to truth and dharma.
In the Śānti Parva’s instruction to Yudhiṣṭhira, Bhīṣma continues a doctrinal exposition, grounding ethical and scriptural authority in a cosmological framework and describing the qualities of the rishis who uphold and transmit that order.