Shloka 12
Adhyāya 159 — Dāna–Dakṣiṇā, Āpaddharma Measures, and Prāyaścitta Classifications
न संत्यजन्त्यात्मकर्म यो न जीर्य॑ति जीर्यत: । यो न पूरयितुं शक्यो लोभ: प्राप्त्या कुरूद्गबह
na santyajantyātmakarma yo na jīryati jīryataḥ | yo na pūrayituṃ śakyo lobhaḥ prāptyā kurūdgbaha ||
毗湿摩说道：“人虽渐老，亦不舍其素习之行；而贪欲啊，俱卢之负荷者，并非凭所得之物便可填满、便可满足。此中教诲在于：年岁本身不能医治执著，而占有只会滋养渴求，不能使之终止。”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Greed is intrinsically insatiable: no amount of acquisition can ‘fill’ it. Therefore ethical life requires restraint and discernment, not the hope that more possessions or successes will end craving.
In Śānti Parva, Bhīṣma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on dharma and inner discipline after the war. Here he warns that even old age does not automatically loosen one’s habitual pursuits, and that greed persists unless consciously checked.