Adhyāya 241: Guṇa-sṛṣṭi, Kṣetrajña-sākṣitva, and Śama through Ātma-jñāna (गुणसृष्टिः, क्षेत्रज्ञसाक्षित्वं, शमः)
एतद् वै श्रोतुमिच्छामि तद् भवान् प्रब्रवीतु मे । एतच्चान्योन्यवैरूप्ये वर्तेते प्रतिकूलत:
etad vai śrotum icchāmi tad bhavān prabravītu me | etac cānyonya-vairūpye vartete pratikūlataḥ ||
এই কথা মই নিশ্চয় শুনিব বিচাৰোঁ; সেয়ে ভৱানে মোক বুজাই ক’ব। আৰু পৰস্পৰ বিকৃতি আৰু বিৰোধৰ ফলত এই বিষয়সমূহ কেনেকৈ প্ৰতিকূলভাৱে চলি থকা যেন লাগে, সেয়াও ক’ব।
शुक उवाच
The verse foregrounds the dharmic method of learning: sincere inquiry and respectful request for clarification. It also raises an ethical-philosophical problem—why, when parties interact, mutual opposition and misrepresentation can make matters unfold ‘contrarily’—inviting a deeper explanation of causes, motives, and right understanding.
Śuka, as the speaker, asks his interlocutor to explain a point he is eager to understand. He specifically questions how a situation becomes marked by reciprocal distortion and antagonism, leading to adverse or contrary outcomes—setting up the next instruction or analysis in the dialogue.