Narada Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 47
Threefold Suffering, Twofold Knowledge, and the Definition of Bhagavān (Vāsudeva); Prelude to Keśidhvaja–Janaka Yoga
वेत्त्येक एव त्वच्छत्रुः खांडिक्यो यो जितस्त्वया । स चाह तं व्रजाम्येष प्रष्टुमात्मरिपुं मुने ॥ ४५ ॥
vettyeka eva tvacchatruḥ khāṃḍikyo yo jitastvayā | sa cāha taṃ vrajāmyeṣa praṣṭumātmaripuṃ mune || 45 ||
Nur einer kennt deinen Feind: Khāṇḍikya, den du besiegt hast. Er sprach: „Ich will jetzt zu ihm gehen, o Weiser, um nach dem inneren Feind (ātma-ripu) zu fragen.“
Narrator within the Narada–Sanatkumara dialogue (Moksha-dharma context)
Vrata: none
Primary Rasa: adbhuta
Secondary Rasa: vira
FAQs
It shifts attention from external opponents to the true obstacle to moksha—the ātma-ripu, the inner enemy such as desire, anger, delusion, and ego—showing that victory is completed only by self-inquiry.
By highlighting the “enemy within,” the verse supports bhakti as inner purification: devotion becomes steady when one identifies and questions the forces that disrupt remembrance of the Divine.
The practical takeaway is not a technical Vedanga rule but a disciplined method akin to śāstric inquiry: praṣṭum (to question) indicates reflective investigation (vicāra) as a tool for inner mastery alongside dharma.