Shloka 21
जनक–पराशर संवादः — वर्ण-गोत्र-धर्मविचारः
Janaka–Parāśara: Varṇa, Gotra, and Dharma Inquiry
बुद्धि जिसके द्वारा देखती है
bhīṣma uvāca | buddhiḥ yasyāḥ dvārā paśyati tad indriyaṃ dṛṣṭiḥ netram iti nāma | sā eva sva-vṛtti-viśeṣeṇa yadā śṛṇoti tadā śrotram ucyate | gandha-grahaṇe prāṇo bhavati | rasa-āsvādane rasanā ucyate | sparśa-anubhave tvak (sparśendriyam) nāma dhatte | evaṃ buddhiḥ punaḥ punaḥ vikriyate | yadā kiṃcit prārthayate (yācate) tadā manaḥ bhavati || adhiṣṭhānāni buddhā hi pṛthag etāni pañcadhā | indriyāṇīti tāny āhus teṣu duṣṭeṣu duṣyati ||
毗湿摩说道：“使觉知得以‘见’者，名为眼、为视；同一机能随其特定作用而转，当其听闻时名为耳。摄取香气之时，它以普拉那（prāṇa，生命之气）而行；品尝滋味之时名为舌；体验触觉之时则称为皮肤——触根。由是，buddhi 随其所作而屡屡变形。及其有所祈求、有所欲望之时，便成为意（manas）。此知觉之力有五种各别的依处，人们称之为诸根；诸根若败坏，buddhi 亦随之败坏。”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The intellect (buddhi) appears as different sense-faculties depending on its mode of operation; therefore, ethical discipline requires guarding the senses, because when the senses are tainted, the intellect and discernment that guide conduct are also tainted.
In Bhishma’s instruction during the Shanti Parva, he explains an inner, psychological account of perception: one underlying cognitive principle functions as sight, hearing, smell, taste, and touch, and also as mind when it desires—linking moral clarity to the purity of sensory engagement.