उशनसः (शुक्रस्य) चरितम् — The Account of Uśanā (Śukra): Yoga, Grievance, and Pacification
ऐश्वर्य तपसा प्राप्तं भ्रष्ट तच्च स्वकर्मभि: । धृतिमास्थाय भगवन् न शोचामि ततस्त्वहम्
aiśvaryaṁ tapasā prāptaṁ bhraṣṭaṁ tac ca svakarmabhiḥ | dhṛtim āsthāya bhagavan na śocāmi tatas tv aham ||
毗湿摩说道:“我以苦行所得的王权与荣盛已然失落——确是被我自身的作为所毁。然而,尊者啊,我以坚忍自持,故不为此哀伤。”
भीष्म उवाच
Even achievements gained through tapas are not immune to decline; when loss arises from one’s own karma, the ethical response is to accept responsibility and remain steady in dhṛti rather than sink into grief.
Bhīṣma reflects on his own rise and fall: he acknowledges that the power he once attained through austerity has been destroyed by his own actions, and he tells his listener that he endures this without lamentation by holding fast to fortitude.