Shloka 25

धर्मस्य बहुद्वारत्वम् — Nārada’s Audience with Indra (Śānti-parva 340)

Devanagari script

यं प्रविश्य भवन्तीह मुक्ता वै द्विजसत्तमा: । स वासुदेवो विज्ञेय: परमात्मा सनातन:,'जो नेत्रोंसे देखा नहीं जाता, त्वचासे जिसका स्पर्श नहीं होता, गन्ध ग्रहण करनेवाली प्राणेन्द्रियसे जो सूँघनेमें नहीं आता, जो रसनेन्द्रियकी पहुँचसे परे है; सत्त्व, रज और तम नामक गुण जिसपर कोई प्रभाव नहीं डाल पाते, जो सर्वव्यापी, साक्षी और सम्पूर्ण जगत्‌का आत्मा कहलाता है, सम्पूर्ण प्राणियोंका नाश हो जानेपर भी जो स्वयं नष्ट नहीं होता है, जिसे अजन्मा, नित्य, सनातन, निर्गुण और निष्कल बताया गया है, जो चौबीस तत्त्वोंसे परे पचीसवें तत्त्वके रूपमें विख्यात है, जिसे अन्तर्यामी पुरुष, निष्क्रिय तथा ज्ञानमय नेत्रोंसे ही देखने योग्य बताया जाता है, जिसमें प्रवेश करके श्रेष्ठ द्विज यहाँ मुक्त हो जाते हैं, वही सनातन परमात्मा है। उसीको वासुदेव नामसे जानना चाहिये

Transliteration

yaṁ praviśya bhavantīha muktā vai dvijasattamāḥ | sa vāsudevo vijñeyaḥ paramātmā sanātanaḥ ||

Translation

Bhishma said: “That Reality, entering into which the best of the twice-born become liberated here, is to be understood as Vāsudeva—the eternal Supreme Self.”

Word by Word

यम्whom

प्रविश्यhaving entered

भवन्तिbecome / are

इहhere (in this world/state)

मुक्ताःliberated

वैindeed

द्विजसत्तमाःbest of the twice-born (brahmins)

सःhe / that (one)

वासुदेवःVāsudeva

विज्ञेयःis to be known / should be understood

परमात्माthe Supreme Self

सनातनःeternal

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

Bhīṣma

Vāsudeva

Paramātmā

Dvijasattamāḥ (foremost twice-born)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Cross References

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Liberation is attained by ‘entering’ (i.e., realizing and abiding in) the Supreme Reality; that Supreme Self is to be known as Vāsudeva—eternal Paramātmā. The verse equates the goal of mokṣa with knowledge/realization of Vāsudeva as the highest Self.

What is happening in the narrative?

In the Śānti Parva’s instruction on peace and ultimate good, Bhīṣma is teaching about the highest principle. Here he concludes a description of the transcendent Self by stating that the sages/foremost twice-born become liberated by entering that Reality, which should be recognized as Vāsudeva, the eternal Paramātmā.