Shloka 33
परिव्राजक-आचारः (Conduct of the Wandering Renunciant) — Mahābhārata, Śānti-parva 269
स्यूमराश्मिर्वाच ये भुज्जते ये ददते यजन्तेडधीयते च ये । मात्राभिरुपलब्धाभिरयें वा त्यागं समाश्रिता:,स्यूमरश्मिने पूछा--ब्रह्मन! जो लोग प्राप्त हुए धनके द्वारा केवल भोग भोगते हैं, जो दान करते हैं, जो उस धनको यज्ञमें लगाते हैं, जो स्वाध्याय करते हैं अथवा जो त्यागका आश्रय लेते हैं, इनमेंसे कौन पुरुष मृत्युके पश्चात् प्रधानरूपसे स्वर्गलोकपर विजय पाता है? मैं जिज्ञासुभावसे पूछ रहा हूँ; आप मुझे यह सब यथार्थरूपसे बताइये
syūmarāśmir uvāca—ye bhuñjate ye dadate yajante ’dhīyate ca ye | mātrābhir upalabdhābhir ye vā tyāgaṃ samāśritāḥ ||
Syūmarāśmi said: “O Brahmin, among those who, with whatever limited means they have obtained, (1) merely enjoy, (2) give in charity, (3) employ their wealth in sacrifice, (4) pursue sacred study, or (5) take refuge in renunciation—who, after death, wins pre-eminently the conquest of heaven? I ask with a sincere desire to know; tell me this truthfully and in full.”
कपिल उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames an ethical inquiry about the best use of limited, acquired resources—enjoyment, charity, sacrifice, sacred study, or renunciation—and asks which orientation most powerfully leads to posthumous heavenly attainment.
Syūmarāśmi questions a Brahmin interlocutor (in the Kapila-related discourse) about comparative spiritual outcomes of different life-choices regarding wealth and practice, seeking a definitive, truthful ranking with respect to attaining heaven after death.