Shloka 35
Rudra-Śiva: Names, Two Natures, and the Logic of Epithets (रुद्रनाम-बहुरूपत्व-प्रकरणम्)
श्रीमहेश्वर उवाच रहस्यश्रवणं धर्मो वेदव्रतनिषेवणम् । अग्निकार्य तथा धर्मों गुरुकार्यप्रसाधनम्
śrīmaheśvara uvāca: rahasyaśravaṇaṃ dharmo vedavrata-niṣevaṇam | agnikāryaṃ tathā dharmo gurukārya-prasādhanam ||
Śrī Maheśvara said: “For one living the disciplined student-life, it is dharma to listen to sacred teachings in confidence, to observe the vows enjoined by the Vedas, to perform the fire-rites, and to carry out the duties of service to one’s teacher. These are the obligations of the brahmacarya-āśrama.”
श्रीमहेश्वर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse defines the dharma of the brahmacārin (student): receive instruction through attentive hearing (especially of esoteric teachings), keep Vedic vows, maintain fire-rites, and fulfill service to the guru—linking knowledge, restraint, ritual, and humility as a single ethical discipline.
Śrī Maheśvara is instructing the listener about āśrama-dharma, specifically outlining the prescribed conduct for the brahmacarya stage of life, emphasizing learning under a teacher and sustaining practice through vows and ritual duties.