Shloka 89
ब्राह्मणस्य पूर्वतरा वृत्तिः — The Earlier Ideal Conduct of a Brahmana
River-of-Saṃsāra Metaphor
सवज़मुद्यतं बाहुं दृष्टवा पाशांश्व वारुणान्
savajram udyataṃ bāhuṃ dṛṣṭvā pāśāṃś ca vāruṇān | daityarāja! mama bāhuṃ vajra-varuṇapāśa-sahitam ūrdhvaṃ kṛtvā hantum icchayāgatāyā mṛtyor api hṛdayaṃ kampate; punaḥ kaḥ sa anyaḥ yasya buddhir na vyathate | tava buddhis tattva-jñāna-yuktā sthirā ca; tasmāt sā kṣaṇam api na vicalati ||
毗湿摩说道：“噢，代底耶之王！当死神本身怀着杀意前来时，见我高举手臂，执金刚杵并持伐楼那之绳索，也会心胆战栗；那么还有谁的心智不会动摇？然而你的理解稳固，洞见真实；因此你连片刻也不曾摇摆。”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
True steadiness comes from tattva-jñāna—clear knowledge of reality. External threats that shake ordinary minds need not disturb one whose intellect is disciplined and rooted in truth.
Bhishma addresses a Daitya-king, describing the terrifying power of his raised arm armed with vajra and Varuṇa’s nooses—so formidable that even personified Death would tremble—then praises the Daitya-king for remaining unshaken due to his stable, truth-knowing intellect.