Shloka 3
Ākiṃcanya–Tyāga Upadeśa
The Instruction on Non-ownership and Renunciation
स तु सार्थो महान् राजन् कम्मिंश्वचिद् गिरिगह्रे । मत्तेन द्विरदेनाथ निहतः प्रायशो5भवत्,राजन! वैश्योंका वह महान् दल किसी पर्वतकी गुफामें डेरा डाले हुए था। इतनेहीमें एक मतवाले हाथीने उसपर आक्रमण कर दिया। उस दलके अधिकांश मनुष्य उसके द्वारा मारे गये
sa tu sārtho mahān rājan kammiṁśvacid girigahre | mattena dviradenātha nihataḥ prāyaśo 'bhavat, rājan |
毗湿摩说道：“大王啊，那支庞大的商队在某处山洞中扎营时，忽遭一头发情狂暴的象袭击。在那次冲击中，大王啊，商队中大多数人都被杀害了。”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse underscores the vulnerability of worldly undertakings to sudden, uncontrollable forces (here, a rutting elephant), setting up an ethical reflection typical of Shanti Parva: prudent conduct and dharmic foresight are needed because calamity can strike without warning.
A large merchant caravan has taken shelter in a mountain cave. A maddened elephant attacks, and most of the caravan’s people are killed, as Bhishma recounts this incident to the king as part of a larger instructive narrative.