Shloka 52
वृत्ति-सत्सङ्ग-दान-धर्म
Livelihood, Virtuous Association, and Ethics of Giving
शीर्षाभितापो नागानां पर्वतानां शिलाजतु । अपां तु नीलिकां विद्यान्निर्मोक॑ भुजगेषु च
bhīṣma uvāca | śīrṣābhitāpo nāgānāṃ parvatānāṃ śilājatu | apāṃ tu nīlikāṃ vidyān nirmokaṃ bhujageṣu ca ||
毗湿摩说道：“大象头部出现的灼热疼痛，应当理解为它们的‘热病’。群山的热病显现为尸罗阇都（śilājatu，矿脂/矿沥青）。名为‘尼利迦’（nīlikā）的病状，当知是水的‘热病’；而蛇类的热病，则是它们蜕下的旧皮——那被弃的皮囊。”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
That ‘fever’ (jvara) can be understood more generally as the distinctive affliction or outward sign of disorder for each category of being—animals, natural formations, and elements—so one should perceive suffering in a broad, comparative way rather than narrowly.
In the Śānti Parva instruction to Yudhiṣṭhira, Bhīṣma continues a didactic catalogue describing how different beings exhibit their own characteristic ‘fever’: elephants through head-heat, mountains through śilājatu exudation, waters through nīlikā, and serpents through the shedding of skin.