Shloka 4
धर्मसूक्ष्मे त्यागप्रधान्यविचारः
Subtle Dharma and the Primacy of Renunciation
तुम तो केवल अस्त्रविद्याके पण्डित हो और वीरब्रतका पालन करनेवाले हो। शास्स्त्रोंके तात्पर्यको यथार्थरूपसे जाननेकी शक्ति तुममें किसी प्रकार नहीं है ।। शाल्त्रार्थसूक्ष्मदर्शी यो धर्मनिश्चयकोविद: । तेनाप्येवं न वाच्यो5हं यदि धर्म प्रपश्यसि,जो लोग शास्त्रोंके सूक्ष्म रहस्यको समझनेवाले हैं और धर्मका निर्णय करनेमें कुशल हैं, वे भी मुझे इस प्रकार उपदेश नहीं दे सकते। यदि तुम धर्मपर दृष्टि रखते हो तो मेरे इस कथनकी यथार्थताका अनुभव करोगे
yudhiṣṭhira uvāca | tvaṃ tu kevalam astravidyāyāḥ paṇḍito vīravratapālakaś ca | śāstratātparyaṃ yathārthato jñātuṃ śaktis tvayi kathaṃcid api nāsti || śāstrārthasūkṣmadarśī yo dharmaniścayakovidaḥ | tenāpy evaṃ na vācyo 'haṃ yadi dharmaṃ prapaśyasi ||
Yudhiṣṭhira said: “You are learned only in the science of weapons and you keep the warrior’s vows; but you do not truly possess the capacity to grasp the real purport of the scriptures. Even one who sees the subtle meaning of śāstra and is skilled in determining dharma would not instruct me in this manner. If you genuinely have insight into dharma, you will recognize the truth of what I am saying.”
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
Martial expertise and adherence to a warrior’s code do not automatically qualify someone to interpret śāstra or to pronounce on dharma. True authority in ethical counsel requires subtle discernment of scriptural intent and competence in dharma-niścaya (reasoned moral determination).
Yudhiṣṭhira rebukes an interlocutor who is offering him advice in a manner Yudhiṣṭhira deems presumptuous or shallow. He contrasts mere proficiency in weapons and vows with the deeper qualification needed to instruct him on dharma, asserting that even genuine experts would not speak to him that way.