Shloka 11
तथैवाप्रतिबुद्धो 5पि विज्ञेयो नृपसत्तम । प्रकृतेस्त्रिगुणायास्तु सेवनात् त्रिगुणो भवेत्,नृपश्रेष्ठ) इसी प्रकार मूर्ख भी विवेकशीलका संग करनेसे विवेकशील हो जाता है, ऐसा समझना चाहिये। त्रिगुणात्मिका प्रकृतिके सम्बन्धसे निर्गुण आत्मा भी त्रिगुणमय-सा हो जाता है
tathaivāpratibuddho 'pi vijñeyo nṛpasattama | prakṛtes triguṇāyās tu sevanāt triguṇo bhavet ||
Vasiṣṭha said: “In the same way, O best of kings, even one who is not yet awakened should be understood to become discerning through association with the discerning. Likewise, by contact and continual involvement with Prakṛti, which is constituted of the three guṇas, even the guṇa-transcendent Self comes to appear as though it were made of the three guṇas.”
वसिष्ठ उवाच
Educational Q&A
Association shapes consciousness: even an unawakened person can become discerning by keeping company with the discerning. Philosophically, the verse adds that the Self, though beyond guṇas, appears guṇa-bound due to sustained contact with Prakṛti—highlighting how identification and proximity create the experience of bondage.
In Śānti Parva’s instruction on peace and right understanding, Vasiṣṭha addresses a king, using an analogy about companionship and then extending it to Sāṅkhya-style metaphysics: contact with Prakṛti makes the guṇa-transcendent Self seem to take on the qualities of the three guṇas.