Shloka 9
सत्य–अनृत, प्रकाश–तमस्, स्वर्ग–नरक विवेचनम्
Truth and Untruth as Light and Darkness; Svarga and Naraka as Ethical Consequences
कीदृशो जीवतां जीव: कक््य वा गच्छन्ति ये मृता: । परलोकमिमं चापि सर्व शंसितुमरहसि
kīdṛśo jīvatāṃ jīvaḥ kva vā gacchanti ye mṛtāḥ | paralokam imaṃ cāpi sarvaṃ śaṃsitum arhasi ||
毗湿摩请求对众生之内在生灵（jīvātman，生命之我）的本性作出清晰说明：死者身后将往何处，此世与彼世究竟如何。他恳请导师将这些要义详尽开示，认为此问关乎正见与正行。
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames a foundational dharmic inquiry: understanding the nature of the jīva (individual self), the post-death trajectory of beings, and the relation between this world and the next. Such knowledge is presented as necessary for orienting ethical life—how one should act when actions have consequences beyond a single lifetime.
In the instruction-heavy setting of the Śānti Parva, Bhīṣma—speaking as an elder authority—poses a direct question to the interlocutor/teacher, requesting a comprehensive explanation about the self, death, and the structure of worldly and otherworldly existence.