Shloka 39
धर्मद्वारबहुत्वविमर्शः — Reflection on the Many ‘Doors’ of Dharma (Śānti-parva 342)
निवृत्तिलक्षणो धर्मस्तथा5< भ्युदयिको5पि च । नराणामयनं ख्यातमहमेक: सनातन:
nivṛttilakṣaṇo dharmas tathābhyudayiko 'pi ca | narāṇām ayanaṃ khyātam aham ekaḥ sanātanaḥ ||
Ich allein bin der Ewige, die wohlbekannte Zuflucht und letzte Stätte aller Menschen. Mir ist weder der Dharma der Entsagung (nivṛtti) unbekannt, der zum höchsten Gut führt, noch der Dharma des weltlichen Engagements (pravṛtti), der Wohlstand und Aufstieg bringt.
अर्जुन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse contrasts two complementary orientations of dharma: nivṛtti (renunciatory discipline aimed at liberation) and abhyudaya (engaged duty aimed at worldly flourishing). It presents the ultimate ground of both as the eternal, singular refuge of beings—identified in the received tradition with Nārāyaṇa.
In the Shānti Parva’s didactic setting, a speaker identified here as Arjuna voices a theological claim of comprehensive knowledge of both paths of dharma and declares the ultimate refuge of humans to be the eternal One (understood by the accompanying tradition as Nārāyaṇa).