Shloka 23
Jvarotpatti — The Origin and Distribution of Jvara
Fever
इन्द्रियाणां स्वकर्मेभ्य: श्रमादुपरमो यदा । भवतीन्द्रियसंत्यागादथ स्वपिति वै नर:,जब अपने-अपने कर्मोंसे थककर इन्द्रियाँ शान्त हो जाती हैं, तब इन्द्रियोंका त्याग करके जीवात्मा सो जाता है
indriyāṇāṁ svakarmebhyaḥ śramād uparamo yadā | bhavatīndriya-saṁtyāgād atha svapiti vai naraḥ ||
Asita nói: Khi các căn mệt mỏi vì những công việc riêng của mình mà lắng xuống, dừng lại vì kiệt sức, thì do buông bỏ sự dính mắc vào hoạt động của giác quan, con người thật sự đi vào giấc ngủ.
असित उवाच
Educational Q&A
Sleep is presented as a natural example of indriya-nigraha (restraint/withdrawal of the senses): when sensory activity ceases due to fatigue and one lets go of engagement with sense-objects, the person enters sleep. Ethically, it highlights that inner quiet arises from reducing sensory outwardness.
In Asita’s instruction within the Śānti Parva’s reflective discourse, he explains a psychological process: the senses tire from their own functions, become calm, and by this withdrawal the person falls asleep—used to illustrate how cessation of sensory activity leads to a settled state.