Shloka 3
अव्यक्त–प्रकृति–इन्द्रियविचारः
The Unmanifest, Prakṛtis, and the Sense-Complex
पराशर उवाच असज्ज: श्रेयसो मूलं ज्ञानं चैव परा गति: । चीर्ण तपो न प्रणश्येद्वाप: क्षेत्रे न नश्यति
parāśara uvāca | asajjaḥ śreyaso mūlaṃ jñānaṃ caiva parā gatiḥ | cīrṇa-tapo na praṇaśyed vāpaḥ kṣetre na naśyati ||
Parāśara said: “O King, freedom from attachment is the very root of true welfare. Knowledge is indeed the highest destination. Austerity that has been duly practiced does not perish; likewise, a gift bestowed upon a worthy recipient never goes to waste.”
पराशर उवाच
Educational Q&A
Non-attachment is presented as the foundation of true good (śreyas), while liberating knowledge is the highest goal. The verse also affirms the enduring fruit of rightly performed austerity and properly directed giving—spiritual effort and charity to a worthy recipient are never wasted.
In Śānti Parva’s instruction on dharma and liberation, the sage Parāśara addresses a king, summarizing key principles: detach from craving, pursue knowledge as the supreme end, and trust that sincere tapas and well-placed dāna yield imperishable merit.