Shloka 4
Vāsudeva’s Upadeśa: The Inner Enemy and the Indra–Vṛtra Precedent (आत्मशत्रु-बोधः; इन्द्र-वृत्रोपाख्यानम्)
वायुदेव उवाच सर्व जिद्ठां मृत्युपदमार्जवं ब्रह्मण: पदम् । एतावान् ज्ञानविषय: कि प्रलाप: करिष्यति
vāyudeva uvāca—sarvaṁ jihvāṁ mṛtyu-padam ārjavaṁ brahmaṇaḥ padam | etāvān jñāna-viṣayaḥ; kiṁ pralāpaḥ kariṣyati ||
বায়ুদেব বললেন— ধর্মরাজ! কুটিলতা মৃত্যুপথ, আর সরলতা ব্রহ্মপদে পৌঁছানোর উপায়। এটুকুই সত্য জ্ঞানের বিষয়। এর বিপরীত যা বলা হয়, তা কেবল প্রলাপ—সে কারই বা উপকার করবে?
वायुदेव उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches a sharp ethical-spiritual polarity: duplicity and crooked conduct lead toward death and ruin, while straightforward integrity (ārjava) is a means to attain Brahman. True knowledge is to grasp this clearly; speech that undermines it is dismissed as useless prattle.
Vāyudeva is speaking as a moral instructor, delivering a concise admonition that reframes ‘knowledge’ as practical ethical discernment—valuing sincerity and condemning deceit—rather than elaborate argumentation or clever talk.