Shloka 12
Khaḍgotpattiḥ (Origin and Dharmic Function of the Sword) | खड्गोत्पत्तिः
तस्याज्ञानाद्धि लोभो हि लोभादज्ञानमेव च । सर्वदोषास्तथा लोभात् तस्मालोभ॑ विवर्जयेत्
tasyājñānād dhi lobho hi lobhād ajñānam eva ca | sarvadoṣās tathā lobhāt tasmāl lobhaṁ vivarjayet |
毗湿摩说道：贪欲确由无明而起；而由贪欲，无明又复增长。一切过失皆从贪欲而生；故当舍离贪欲。
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Greed (lobha) and ignorance (ajñāna) form a self-reinforcing cycle: ignorance gives rise to greed, and greed deepens ignorance. Since greed becomes the source from which many other vices emerge, the practical dharmic remedy is to abandon greed through restraint and clarity of understanding.
In the Shanti Parva’s post-war instruction, Bhishma addresses Yudhishthira with teachings on righteous conduct and inner discipline. Here he delivers a concise moral principle explaining how inner delusion leads to greed and how greed then multiplies faults, advising renunciation of greed as a safeguard of dharma.