Shloka 36
Śānti-parva 168: Śoka-nivṛtti-buddhi (The Cognition that Reduces Grief) and Piṅgalā’s Nairāśya
पुष्पतो मथ्विव रस: काम आशभ्यां तथा स्मृतः । कामो धर्मार्थयोर्योनि: कामश्चाथ तदात्मक:
puṣpato madhv iva rasaḥ kāma āśrabhyaṃ tathā smṛtaḥ | kāmo dharmārthayor yoniḥ kāmaś cātha tadātmakaḥ ||
如花中取蜜，其味最精；同样，欲（kāma）被忆为较法（dharma）与利（artha）更为上胜之精华。欲乃法与利之胎藏与根源；故欲亦在某种意义上具其性质。
भीमयेन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames kāma (desire) as a powerful motivating essence: like honey extracted from flowers, it is presented as the driving source that can generate pursuits of dharma (ethical duty) and artha (worldly welfare). It suggests that human striving for duty and prosperity often arises from underlying desire, so kāma must be understood and governed rather than ignored.
In Śānti Parva’s instruction section, Bhīṣma is teaching about the aims of life and their interrelation. Here he uses an analogy (flower and honey) to explain how kāma functions as an inner impetus connected to dharma and artha.