Shloka 733
ब्राह्मणस्य पूर्वतरा वृत्तिः — The Earlier Ideal Conduct of a Brahmana
River-of-Saṃsāra Metaphor
विद्वान प्राप्यैवमत्यर्थ न प्रहृष्येन्न च व्यथेत् काल ([प्रारब्ध) ही सबकी उत्पत्ति और संहारका कर्ता है। दूसरी सारी वस्तुएँ इसमें कारण नहीं मानी जा सकतीं; अतः विद्वान् पुरुष नाश-विनाश
vidvān prāpyaivam atyarthaṁ na prahṛṣyen na ca vyathet | kālaḥ sarvasya utpatti-saṁhārayoḥ kartā | dvitīyāḥ sarvā vastavaḥ asmin kāraṇaṁ na manyante | ataḥ vidvān puruṣo nāśa-vināśam aiśvaryaṁ sukha-duḥkham abhyudayaṁ vā parābhavaṁ vā prāpya na atyanta-harṣaṁ kuryān na ca atīva vyathitaḥ syāt ||
毗湿摩说道：“智者明白此理，便不应过度欢喜，也不应沉溺忧苦。唯有时间（迦罗）被视为一切生起与一切毁灭的造作者；在此处，别无他物被承认为真正的原因。因此，遭逢损失与败亡，或得势与富贵，遇乐与痛，逢兴起或挫败之时，智者不应为极端的喜悦所牵引，也不应为悲伤所压倒。”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Time (kāla) governs arising and destruction; recognizing this, a wise person maintains equanimity—neither excessive joy in prosperity nor deep sorrow in loss—cultivating steadiness of mind as a dharmic discipline.
In the Shanti Parva’s instruction section, Bhishma continues advising Yudhishthira on righteous living after the war, emphasizing mental balance amid changing fortunes by attributing outcomes to the overarching power of Time rather than to secondary causes.