Shloka 13
Adhyāya 249 — Mṛtyu-prādurbhāvaḥ (The Manifestation of Death) / Restraint of Tejas and Ordered Saṃhāra
लोभमोहतृणच्छन्नां कामक्रो धसरीसूपाम् । सत्यतीर्थनृतक्षोभां क्रोधपड्कां सरिद्वराम्
lobha-moha-tṛṇa-channāṁ kāma-krodha-sarīsṛpām | satya-tīrtha-nṛta-kṣobhāṁ krodha-paṅkāṁ sarid-varām ||
毗耶娑说：“名为轮回（saṃsāra）之河者，甚可怖畏，流贯诸世界。其岸由心之意向所成；贪与痴之草丛蔓生，遮覆其面。欲与嗔居其中，如蛇潜伏。真实为其渡口，虚妄为其湍动；嗔恚为其淤泥。称其为‘诸河之最’，乃因其卷挟众生之力，无河能及。未能降伏自我者，渡之极难；然以清净之辨慧，便能越过。”
व्यास उवाच
Educational Q&A
Saṁsāra is portrayed as a dangerous river whose hidden grasses are greed and delusion, whose serpents are desire and anger, and whose mud is anger itself. Crossing becomes possible through self-conquest and purified discernment, with truth serving as the reliable ‘ford’.
In Śānti Parva’s instruction on liberation and conduct, Vyāsa teaches through an extended metaphor: the human condition is like a river that sweeps beings along, and the listener is urged to cross it by cultivating truth, clarity, and mastery over the mind and passions.