Shloka 11
ब्रह्मघोष-प्रवर्तनम्, अनध्याय-नियमः, वायु-मार्ग-वर्णनम्
Restoring Vedic Recitation, the Anadhyaya Rule, and the Taxonomy of Winds
अव्यक्तेकत्वमित्याहुननात्वं पुरुषे तथा । सर्वभूतदयावन्त: केवलं ज्ञानमास्थिता
avyaktaikatvam ity āhur nānātvam puruṣe tathā | sarvabhūtadayāvantaḥ kevalaṃ jñānam āsthitāḥ ||
Yājñavalkya sprach: „Einige gelehrte Sāṅkhyas — voll Mitgefühl für alle Wesen und allein auf unterscheidende Erkenntnis gestützt — erklären, Prakṛti, der unmanifestierte Ursprung, sei eins, während die Puruṣas (bewussten Selbste) viele seien.“
याज़्वल्क्य उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse reports a Sāṅkhya position: the unmanifest Prakṛti is a single underlying principle, while conscious selves (Puruṣas) are numerically many. It also links true philosophical inquiry with universal compassion and reliance on knowledge rather than ritual or external supports.
In Śānti Parva’s instructional setting, Yājñavalkya is presenting and distinguishing philosophical views. Here he cites what certain compassionate Sāṅkhya scholars maintain about the relation between Prakṛti (one) and Puruṣa (many).