Shloka 35
Śānti-parva 168: Śoka-nivṛtti-buddhi (The Cognition that Reduces Grief) and Piṅgalā’s Nairāśya
नवनीतं यथा दध्नस्तथा कामोडर्थधर्मत: । श्रेयस्तैलं हि पिण्याकाद् घृतं श्रेय उदश्वित: । श्रेय: पुष्पफलं काष्ठात् कामो धर्मार्थियोर्वर:
navanītaṃ yathā dadhnas tathā kāmo 'rthadharmataḥ | śreyas tailaṃ hi piṇyākād ghṛtaṃ śreya udaśvitaḥ | śreyaḥ puṣpaphalaṃ kāṣṭhāt kāmo dharmārthayor varaḥ ||
譬如酪之精华为酥，亦如法（dharma）与利（artha）之精华为欲（kāma）。又如油胜于饼粕，酥油胜于乳清，树之花果胜于枯木；同样，欲亦胜于法与利二者。
भीमयेन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse argues, through everyday extraction metaphors (butter from curd, oil from oil-cake, ghee from buttermilk, fruit from wood), that kāma—desire/pleasure as a human aim—is the most ‘refined’ and motivating outcome among dharma and artha, because it is presented as what makes the other pursuits yield tangible satisfaction.
Within the didactic setting of Śānti Parva, Bhīma is depicted advancing a viewpoint about the hierarchy of life-goals (puruṣārthas), asserting the superiority of kāma over dharma and artha, and supporting his claim with persuasive analogies drawn from household and agrarian life.