Shloka 4
Sahadeva on Attachment (mamatā), ‘mameti/na mameti’, and the Middle Path of Conduct
दव्यक्षरस्तु भवेन्मृत्युस्त्रयक्षरं ब्रह्म शाश्वतम् । ममेति च भवेन्मृत्युर्न ममेति च शाश्वतम्,दो अक्षरोंका “मम” (यह मेरा है--ऐसा भाव) मृत्यु है, और तीन अक्षरोंका “न मम' (यह मेरा नहीं है--ऐसा भाव) अमृत--सनातन ब्रह्म है
dvayakṣaras tu bhaven mṛtyus trayakṣaraṃ brahma śāśvatam | mameti ca bhaven mṛtyur na mameti ca śāśvatam ||
دو حرفوں کا ‘مَم’—یعنی ‘یہ میرا ہے’—موت ہے؛ اور تین حرفوں کا ‘نَ مَم’—یعنی ‘یہ میرا نہیں’—امر، ازلی برہمن ہے۔ ‘میرا’ کی ملکیت کا احساس موت کی طرف لے جاتا ہے؛ ‘میرا نہیں’ کی بےملکیتی ابدیت کی طرف۔
सहदेव उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches that possessiveness (‘mama’, “mine”) binds one to mortality and suffering, while non-possessiveness (‘na mama’, “not mine”) aligns the mind with the eternal reality (Brahman). Ethically, it urges restraint of egoic ownership and cultivation of detachment as a path to peace and liberation.
In the Shanti Parva’s instruction-oriented setting, Sahadeva delivers a concise aphorism: he contrasts two short expressions—‘mama’ and ‘na mama’—to show how inner attitude determines bondage or freedom, framing spiritual wisdom as practical moral guidance.