Shloka 13
Vidyā–Avidyā and the Twenty-Fifth Principle
Sāṃkhya–Yoga Clarification
दुर्लभो हि मनुष्येन्द्र नर: प्रत्यवमर्शवान् । यो वै प्रियसुखे क्षीणे तप: कर्तुं व्यवस्यति,नरेन्द्र! संसारमें ऐसा विवेकी मनुष्य दुर्लभ है, जो स्टत्री-पुत्र आदि प्रियजनोंसे मिलनेवाले सुखके न रहनेपर तपमें प्रवृत्त होनेका ही निश्चय करता है
durlabho hi manuṣyendra naraḥ pratyavamarśavān | yo vai priyasukhe kṣīṇe tapaḥ kartuṁ vyavasyati nareन्द्र ||
Parāśara said: “O lord of men, rare indeed is that person endowed with reflective discernment—one who, when the pleasures born of what is dear have been exhausted, resolves firmly to undertake austerity. Such a one does not collapse when familial and worldly comforts fade, but turns that loss into a deliberate commitment to inner discipline.”
पराशर उवाच
Educational Q&A
True discernment is shown when a person, after the decline of pleasures tied to loved ones and worldly attachments, chooses austerity and inner discipline rather than chasing replacement pleasures. The verse praises the rare capacity to convert loss into spiritual resolve.
Parāśara is instructing a king, emphasizing how uncommon it is to find someone who reflects deeply and, when ordinary sources of happiness fade, deliberately commits to tapas (a disciplined spiritual path) instead of remaining bound to grief or renewed attachment.