Shloka 157
नृशंस-लक्षणनिर्णयः | Determining the Marks of Cruel Conduct
Nṛśaṃsa
इति श्रीमहाभारते शान्तिपर्वणि आपद्धर्मपर्वणि पवनशाल्मलिसंवादे सप्तपञठ्चाशदधिकशततमो<ध्याय:
iti śrīmahābhārate śāntiparvaṇi āpaddharmaparvaṇi pavaṇaśālmalisaṃvāde saptapañcāśad-adhikaśatatamo 'dhyāyaḥ
至此，《圣摩诃婆罗多》之《寂静篇》（Śānti Parva）中，《处难法》（Āpaddharma）部分，“风神帕瓦那（Pavana）与娑罗摩梨树（Śālmalī）之对话”第一百五十七章终了。此题记标示教诲一段的收束，并将其安置于毗湿摩（Bhīṣma）关于逆境中之法（dharma）的宏阔训诫之中。
भीष्य उवाच
Educational Q&A
This line is a colophon rather than a doctrinal verse: it frames the teaching as part of Āpaddharma—ethical conduct under crisis—delivered through the Pavana–Śālmali dialogue within Bhīṣma’s instruction. Its function is to locate and conclude the episode, emphasizing the Mahābhārata’s method of embedding dharma-teachings in illustrative dialogues.
The text signals the end of a chapter: the Pavana (Wind) and Śālmali (tree) dialogue has concluded, and the compiler’s closing formula identifies the work (Mahābhārata), the book (Śānti Parva), the subsection (Āpaddharma), and the chapter number (157th).