Shloka 4
निरय-परमस्थान-वर्णनम्
Niraya and the Supreme Station: A Metaphysical Re-reading
तत्राप्येवंविधा लोके वृत्ति: सत्यानृते भवेत् । धर्माधरमाँ प्रकाशश्न॒ तमो दुःखं सुखं तथा
tatrāpy evaṃvidhā loke vṛttiḥ satyānṛte bhavet | dharmādharmau prakāśaś ca tamo duḥkhaṃ sukhaṃ tathā ||
Bharadvāja said: “Even there, in the world, one should recognize a pattern of conduct of this kind: truth and untruth become the decisive measures—appearing as dharma and adharma, as light and darkness, and likewise as sorrow and happiness.”
भरद्वाज उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse links ethical reality to truthfulness: truth and untruth are not merely statements but forces that manifest as dharma/adharma, clarity/obscurity, and ultimately happiness/suffering. It teaches that moral discernment begins with recognizing how truth aligns with light and well-being, while untruth aligns with darkness and distress.
Bharadvāja is instructing the listener within the didactic setting of the Śānti Parva, framing a moral analysis of worldly conduct (vṛtti). He explains how fundamental opposites—truth/untruth—structure human life and are experienced as ethical and existential outcomes.