Shloka 39
दैव–पुरुषकार-प्रश्नः
Daiva–Puruṣakāra Inquiry: Fate and Human Effort
धुन्धुमारश्न राजर्षि: सत्रेष्वेव जरां गत: । प्रीतिदायं परित्यज्य सुष्वाप स गिरिव्रजे
dhundhumāraśna rājarṣiḥ satreṣv eva jarāṃ gataḥ | prītidāyaṃ parityajya suṣvāpa sa girivraje ||
Bhīṣma nói: Vị vương hiền Dhundhumāraśna, khi còn miệt mài trong các kỳ tế lễ (satra), đã già nua. Ngài từ bỏ những điều êm ái, vừa lòng, rồi nằm xuống ngủ tại Girivraja—một am thất nơi núi rừng.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
That even a ruler devoted to Vedic duties may, upon reaching old age, consciously relinquish pleasures and comforts, embracing simplicity and restraint as a dharmic transition toward detachment.
Bhīṣma describes the royal sage Dhundhumāraśna: after becoming aged through long participation in sacrificial rites, he gives up pleasurable living and rests in a secluded mountain retreat, signaling a shift from ritual and worldly life toward austerity.