Shloka 14
Brahmopadeśa on Saṃnyāsa, Tapas, and Jñāna (ब्रह्मोपदेशः—संन्यासतपोज्ञानविमर्शः)
आजीव्य: सर्वभूतानां ब्रह्म॒वृक्ष: सनातन: । एनं छित्त्वा च भित्त्वा च तत्त्वज्ञानासिना बुध:
ājīvyaḥ sarvabhūtānāṁ brahmavṛkṣaḥ sanātanaḥ | enaṁ chittvā ca bhittvā ca tattvajñānāsinā budhaḥ ||
Vāyu said: “This ancient ‘Brahman-tree’ is the livelihood and support of all beings. Yet the wise cut it down and split it apart with the sword of true knowledge (tattva-jñāna), discerning reality as it is and severing the root of delusion.”
वायुदेव उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches that what appears to be the fundamental support of worldly existence can be transcended: the wise person uses discriminative knowledge (tattva-jñāna) to cut through and dismantle the structures of ignorance and attachment, moving toward liberation.
Vāyudeva is instructing the listener through a vivid metaphor: an eternal ‘Brahman-tree’ that sustains beings is to be ‘cut and split’ by the wise using the ‘sword of true knowledge,’ indicating an inner act of discernment rather than physical violence.