Śreyas-nirdeśa (Discerning the Superior Good): Nārada–Gālava Saṃvāda
असंत्याज्यं यदा मर्त्य: कि स्वस्थ इव तिष्ठसि | पिताजी! जब इस शरीरमें मृत्यु
asantyājyaṃ yadā martyaḥ kiṃ svastha iva tiṣṭhasi |
毗湿摩说道:“当那不可抛弃之物——死亡本身——已立于人前,你为何仍如安逸无事?在此身中,死亡、衰老、疾病,以及由诸多因缘所生的连绵苦患恒常相随;人实难真正摆脱。既如此,你为何还能无忧而坐?”
भीष्म उवाच
Bhishma highlights the inevitability of death, aging, and disease, urging alertness and ethical seriousness rather than complacency. The verse presses the listener to recognize unavoidable suffering as a prompt for right living, reflection, and detachment.
In the Shanti Parva’s instruction-setting, Bhishma addresses his interlocutor with a pointed question: given that the body is bound to death, decay, and illness, why is the person behaving as if secure and untroubled? It functions as a wake-up call within Bhishma’s broader counsel on dharma and the human condition.