Rules of Purity (Shauca) — Rules of Purity (Śauca), Permissible Foods, and the Duties of the Householder and Forest-Dweller
सुकेशिरुवाच विप्राणां चातुराश्रम्यं विस्तरान्मे तपोधनाः आचक्षध्वं न मे तृप्तिः शृण्वतः प्रतिपद्यते
sukeśiruvāca viprāṇāṃ cāturāśramyaṃ vistarānme tapodhanāḥ ācakṣadhvaṃ na me tṛptiḥ śṛṇvataḥ pratipadyate
Sukeśi sprach: O Asketen, reich an Tapas, erklärt mir ausführlich das System der vier Āśramas der Brāhmaṇas. Während ich zuhöre, werde ich nicht satt (ich wünsche mehr zu vernehmen).
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The verse models śravaṇa and jijñāsā (earnest inquiry): dharma is not merely received passively but sought with sustained attention, indicating that moral knowledge matures through repeated hearing and reflection.
This is a narrative hinge (praśna) that triggers an instructional section; such dialogic structuring is a common Purāṇic method for embedding dharma teachings alongside the canonical lakṣaṇas.
A rākṣasa’s hunger to hear about brāhmaṇical āśrama-dharma symbolizes the permeability of spiritual aspiration across ontological and social boundaries—suggesting dharma’s universality and the transformative power of satsanga (association with sages).