Shloka 333
अध्याय ३३७ — ज्ञानमार्ग-वैविध्यप्रश्नः तथा व्यासस्य नारायणोद्भवकथा
Systems of Knowledge and Vyāsa’s Nārāyaṇa-Origin
न किलातप्ततपसा शकक््यते द्रष्टमज्जसा । “वहाँके निवासियोंके तेजसे आँखें चौंधिया जानेके कारण हम वहाँ किसी पुरुषको देख नहीं पाते थे। तदनन्तर दैवयोगसे हमारे हृदयमें यह ज्ञान प्रकट हुआ कि तपस्या किये बिना हमलोग भगवानको सुगमतापूर्वक नहीं देख सकते
na kilātaptatapasā śakyate draṣṭum ajjasā |
Bhīṣma said: “Truly, without the austerity of performed tapas, it is not possible to behold (the Lord) directly and with ease. Overpowered by the radiance of the inhabitants there, our eyes were dazzled and we could not discern any person; then, by the dispensation of fate, this understanding arose in our hearts—that without tapas we cannot readily see God.”
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
Direct spiritual realization is not attained effortlessly; tapas—disciplined austerity and inner purification—is presented as a necessary condition for truly beholding the Divine, with insight ultimately arising through a combination of effort and divine dispensation.
The speakers (as recalled by Bhishma) reach a radiant realm where the brilliance of its inhabitants overwhelms their sight, preventing clear perception; afterward, they realize that without prior tapas they cannot easily see the Lord.