Shloka 12
दमप्रशंसा — Praise of Self-Restraint
Dama
रजस्तमसि पर्यस्तं सत्त्वं च रजसि स्थितम् । ज्ञानाधिष्ठानमव्यक्तं बुद्धयहड्कारलक्षणम्
rajas-tamasi paryastaṃ sattvaṃ ca rajasi sthitam | jñānādhiṣṭhānam avyaktaṃ buddhya-haṅkāra-lakṣaṇam ||
毗湿摩说：当罗阇斯（rajas）沉坠于昏暗的多摩斯（tamas），而萨埵（sattva）又栖止于罗阇斯之中时，那作为知识依止之处的“不显自我”（unmanifest Self），便被智性（buddhi）与我慢（ahaṃkāra）之器具所烙印。于此境地，澄明不再为主；理解被躁动的欲求与遮蔽的惰性所过滤，“我”与“我所”的执取开始支配辨别。
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse explains how the interplay of the three guṇas affects cognition: when tamas and rajas dominate, even the basis of knowledge (the unmanifest principle) appears conditioned through buddhi (intellect) and ahaṅkāra (ego), so discernment becomes colored by agitation and delusion rather than pure clarity.
In the Śānti Parva’s instruction on inner discipline and metaphysical analysis, Bhishma teaches Yudhiṣṭhira about the guṇas and the structure of experience, describing how shifts in sattva, rajas, and tamas shape the mind’s functioning and the rise of ego-centered understanding.