Shloka 7
Adhyāya 290: Sāṃkhya-vidhi, Deha-doṣa, Guṇa-vicāra, and Mokṣa-gati
Bhīṣma–Yudhiṣṭhira Dialogue
पराशरजीने कहा--राजन्! जैसा कि मनीषी पुरुषोंका कथन है, धर्मका ही विधिपूर्वक अनुष्ठान किया जाय तो वह इहलोक और परलोकमें भी कल्याणकारी होता है। उससे बढ़कर दूसरा कोई श्रेयका उत्तम साधन नहीं है ।। प्रतिपद्य नरो धर्म स्वर्गलोके महीयते । धर्मात्मकः कर्मविधिदेंहिनां नृपसत्तम,नृपश्रेष्ठ) धर्मको जानकर उसका आश्रय लेनेवाला मनुष्य स्वर्गलोकमें सम्मानित होता है। वेदोंमें जो 'सत्यं वद, धर्म चर, यजेत, जुहुयात्” इत्यादि वाक्योंद्वारा मनुष्योंका कर्तव्य विधान किया गया है, वही धर्मका लक्षण है
parāśara uvāca—rājan! yathā manīṣi-puruṣāṇāṃ vacanaṃ, dharmasyaiva vidhi-pūrvakam anuṣṭhānaṃ kriyate cet sa iha-loke para-loke ca kalyāṇakaraḥ. tasmād anyat śreyasaḥ uttamaṃ sādhanam nāsti. pratipadya naro dharmaṃ svarga-loke mahīyate. dharmātmakaḥ karma-vidhir dehināṃ, nṛpa-sattama. vedeṣu ‘satyaṃ vada, dharmaṃ cara, yajeta, juhuyāt’ ity-ādi-vākyaiḥ manuṣyāṇāṃ kartavya-vidhānaṃ yat, tad eva dharmasya lakṣaṇam.
Parāśara said: “O King, as the wise declare, when dharma is practiced in the proper, prescribed manner, it brings well-being both in this world and in the next. There is no higher means to true welfare than that. A man who understands dharma and takes refuge in it is honored in the heavenly realm. For embodied beings, O best of kings, the rule of action grounded in dharma is set forth in the Vedas; the injunctions such as ‘Speak the truth, practice dharma, perform sacrifice, offer oblations’—these constitute the very mark by which dharma is known.”
पराशर उवाच
Educational Q&A
Dharma, when performed according to proper injunction (vidhi), is the supreme means to true welfare (śreyas), benefiting both this life and the next; Vedic commands like truthfulness, righteous conduct, sacrifice, and oblations indicate dharma’s defining marks.
In the Śānti Parva’s instruction on righteous living, the sage Parāśara addresses a king, urging him to rely on dharma and explaining that the Vedas prescribe concrete duties that serve as dharma’s recognizable definition.