Shloka 43
Daṇḍa-svarūpa-nirūpaṇa
The Nature, Forms, and Function of Daṇḍa
सर्वान् कामान् कामयानो हि धीर: सत्त्वेनाल्पेनाप्रुते हीनदोष: । यश्षात्मान प्रार्थयते<र्थ्यमानै: श्रेय:पात्रं पूरयते च नाल्पम्
sarvān kāmān kāmayāno hi dhīraḥ sattvenālpenāprute hīna-doṣaḥ | yaś cātmānaṃ prārthayate 'rthyamānaiḥ śreyaḥ-pātraṃ pūrayate ca nālpam ||
毗湿摩说道：即使心中希求诸般享乐，然坚忍而明辨之人——若无过失、不受染污，纵仅凭少许内在清净为依——亦不致自损。反之，当此人处于众人为世利而来求请之中，仍能为自身求取真实之善，他便能丰盈地充满功德与安乐之器，而非浅薄寡少。
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Desire by itself is not the final measure of a person; what matters is inner purity (sattva), freedom from corruption and faults, and a deliberate orientation toward śreyas (the higher good). Even amid worldly requests and pressures, the wise person who seeks the self’s true welfare accumulates abundant merit and well-being.
In the Shanti Parva’s instruction on dharma and right conduct, Bhishma continues advising Yudhishthira. Here he characterizes the dhīra (steadfast wise person): even if such a person moves among worldly desires and petitioners, his untainted nature and pursuit of śreyas make him a source and receptacle of great good rather than moral decline.