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 ||
Yudhiṣṭhira sprach: „Manche gelangen, indem sie den Geist auf eine bloße zweisilbige Lautung richten, zur Erkenntnis der höchsten Wirklichkeit; andere verstehen das Wesen des Höchsten durch Hunderte, ja Tausende von Schriftworten, in Versen und Worten ausgezeichnet. Wie immer es erreicht wird: wahres Erwachen — klare innere Gewissheit — ist das Kennzeichen der Befreiung.“
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.
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