Shloka 35
Jarā-Mṛtyu-anatikrama: Janaka–Pañcaśikha-saṃvāda
Aging and Death Cannot Be Overstepped
प्राक् कृतेन ममत्वेन तासु तास्विह योनिषु । निर्ममस्य ममत्वेन कि कृतं तासु तासु च
prāk kṛtena mamatvena tāsu tāsv iha yoniṣu | nirmamasya mamatvena kiṁ kṛtaṁ tāsu tāsu ca ||
婆悉吒说道：“往昔因‘我所’之习气，我在此处于一胎复一胎之间流转。如今，对已离占有之心者而言，再执著于‘我的’——此生或他生——又能成就什么？”
वसिष्ठ उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse critiques mamatva (the possessive sense of “mine”) as a cause of repeated births and suffering, and praises nirmamatva (freedom from possessiveness) as the ethical and spiritual stance that makes clinging pointless and unproductive.
Vasiṣṭha reflects on his own past entanglement in possessiveness that led him through many forms of birth, and he now argues—by rhetorical question—that for one who has become detached, re-adopting ‘mine-ness’ serves no meaningful purpose in any life.