Shloka 23
Rudra-Śiva: Names, Two Natures, and the Logic of Epithets (रुद्रनाम-बहुरूपत्व-प्रकरणम्)
धर्म: किलक्षण: प्रोक्त: कथं वा चरितुं नरै: । शक््यो धर्ममविन्दद्धिर्धर्मज्ञ वद मे प्रभो
nārada uvāca | dharmaḥ ki-lakṣaṇaḥ proktaḥ kathaṃ vā carituṃ naraiḥ | śakyo dharmam avindadbhir dharmajña vada me prabho prabho dharmajña ||
Nārada said: “What marks define dharma, as it has been taught? And how can human beings live in accordance with dharma if they have not yet found or understood it? O knower of dharma, tell me—O revered one—how this is to be done.”
नारद उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames a foundational ethical problem: dharma must be defined by recognizable marks (lakṣaṇa), and guidance is needed on how ordinary people can practice it when they lack clear knowledge or direct realization of what dharma is.
Nārada, in the role of an inquirer, addresses a ‘knower of dharma’ and asks for a clear definition of dharma and practical instruction for those who have not yet discovered or understood it.