Mahabharata 3.201.111 — Vana Parva, Adhyaya 201, Shloka 111
Dharma-vyādha’s Analysis of Moral Decline and the Mahābhūta–Guṇa Schema (धर्मव्याधोपदेशः)
द्वयक्षरादभिसंधाय केचिच्छलोकपदाड्कितै: । शतैरन्यै: सहसैश्न प्रत्ययो मोक्षलक्षणम्
dvayakṣarād abhisandhāya kecic chloka-padāṅkitaiḥ | śatair anyaiḥ sahasraiś ca pratyayo mokṣa-lakṣaṇam ||
কেউ মাত্র দুই অক্ষরের মন্ত্রে মন স্থির করে পরম তত্ত্বকে জানে; আর কেউ শ্লোক ও পদে চিহ্নিত শত-সহস্র শাস্ত্রবাক্যে পরমাত্মার স্বরূপ বোঝে। যেভাবেই হোক—দৃঢ় বোধ, অন্তঃপ্রত্যয়ই মোক্ষের লক্ষণ।
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
Liberation is characterized by pratyaya—clear, settled inner realization. The means may be brief (a two-syllabled sacred utterance) or extensive (many scriptural statements), but the decisive mark is awakening/conviction of truth.
Yudhiṣṭhira is reflecting on the ways people come to know the Supreme Reality. He contrasts concise contemplative supports with extensive scriptural study, concluding that the essential outcome is genuine realization, which is the hallmark of mokṣa.
Ask anything about this verse
Curious about the meaning, context, or a word? Ask, and continue the conversation in the Vedapath app.
A free Google sign-in keeps your chat saved across web and the app.
Read Mahabharata in the Vedapath app
Scan the QR code to open this directly in the app, with audio, word-by-word meanings, and more.