Shloka 4
यन्नैति तपसा वक्षिन्न वेदाध्ययनेन च । न व्रतैनोंपवासैश्ल न प्रशान्त्या न मन्युना,जन्म लेते ही उन्होंने अपनी इच्छासे शरीरको बढ़ा लिया तथा उन महायशस्वी व्यासजीको (स्वतः: ही) अंगों और इतिहासोंसहित सम्पूर्ण वेदों और उस परमात्मतत्त्वका ज्ञान प्राप्त हो गया, जिसे कोई तपस्या, वेदाध्ययन, व्रत, उपवास, शम और यज्ञ आदिके द्वारा भी नहीं प्राप्त कर सकता
yan naiti tapasā vakṣin na vedādhyayanena ca | na vratair nopavāsaiś ca na praśāntyā na manyunā ||
Ugraśravas said: “O eloquent one, that supreme reality is not attained by austerity, nor by mere study of the Vedas; not by vows or fasting, not by outward calm, and not by anger-driven effort.”
शौनक उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse stresses that the highest truth is not guaranteed by external disciplines—tapas, Vedic study, vows, fasting, or even a cultivated calm—nor by forceful emotion like anger. It points toward a deeper, inward realization beyond mere technique.
Śaunaka addresses the narrator (vakṣin), highlighting the extraordinary nature of Vyāsa’s realization: the tradition portrays him as possessing comprehensive Vedic and metaphysical knowledge not as a result of ordinary practices alone, but as an exceptional, innate attainment.