Adhyātma–Adhibhūta–Adhidaivata Correspondences and the Triguṇa Lakṣaṇas (Śānti-parva 301)
यच्चेतिहासेषु महत्सु दृष्टं यच्चार्थशास्त्रे नृप शिष्टजुष्टे । ज्ञानं च लोके यदिहास्ति किंचित् सांख्यागतं तच्च महन्महात्मन्
yac caitihāseṣu mahatsu dṛṣṭaṃ yac cārthaśāstre nṛpa śiṣṭajuṣṭe | jñānaṃ ca loke yad ihāsti kiṃcit sāṅkhyāgataṃ tac ca mahan mahātman, nareśa! ||
Bhīṣma nói: “Hỡi đức vua, điều gì được thấy trong các truyền thống sử thi lớn, điều gì có trong Arthaśāstra—được người học rộng thực hành và tán thành—và bất cứ tri thức sâu xa nào hiện hữu ở đời này: tất cả, hỡi bậc đại tâm, đều bắt nguồn từ Sāṅkhya.”
भीष्म उवाच
Bhishma asserts that the most authoritative forms of knowledge—epic-historical wisdom, refined political science, and general worldly insight—ultimately rest on Sāṅkhya’s analytical discernment of fundamental principles. The ethical implication is that right action and good governance require clear understanding of reality’s constituents and the distinction between enduring principles and transient conditions.
In the Shanti Parva’s instruction to the king, Bhishma continues his didactic discourse after the war, emphasizing philosophical foundations for dharma and rulership. Here he elevates Sāṅkhya as a root-source of recognized wisdom across traditions, thereby guiding the king toward principled, discriminating judgment in both personal ethics and royal policy.