Shloka 21
ऋग्यजुःसामनिष्पाद्यं यज्ञकर्म मतं तव परमार्थभूतं तत्रापि श्रूयतां गदतो मम
ṛgyajuḥsāmaniṣpādyaṃ yajñakarma mataṃ tava paramārthabhūtaṃ tatrāpi śrūyatāṃ gadato mama
তুমি ঋগ্, যজুঃ ও সাম থেকে উদ্ভূত যজ্ঞকর্মকেই পরম পথ মনে কর; কিন্তু সেই যজ্ঞের মধ্যেও এক পরম, অন্তর্নিহিত তাত্পর্য আছে—আমার বাক্য থেকে তা শোনো।
Sage Parāśara (addressing Maitreya)
Speaker: Parasara
Topic: You take Vedic sacrifice (from Ṛg-Yajus-Sāman) as the highest path; what is its inner, supreme purport beyond the external rite?
Teaching: Devotional
Quality: revealing
Concept: Even Vedic yajña has an inner, supreme intent that transcends mere ritual performance and points toward the highest reality.
Vedantic Theme: Dharma
Application: Engage outer practices (ritual, service, discipline) while seeking their inner aim—purification and God-centeredness—rather than stopping at form alone.
Vishishtadvaita: Suggests that Vedic ritual is subordinate and teleological—its deepest meaning culminates in devotion/realization of the Supreme Person rather than autonomous ritual efficacy.
Vishnu Form: Para-Brahman
Bhakti Type: Shanta
FAQs
This verse frames yajña as Veda-born and important, but insists its highest value lies in its inner, supreme purport—not merely the external rite.
He signals that even within Vedic sacrificial procedure there is a deeper doctrinal meaning, which he will articulate directly as part of his instruction to Maitreya.
By pointing to a ‘supreme purport’ beyond ritual, the text steers the listener toward the ultimate divine reality that rituals serve—classically understood in the Vishnu Purana as culminating in Vishnu.