Shloka 11
Atithi-prāpti and the Brāhmaṇa’s Deliberation on Triadic Dharma (अतिथिप्राप्तिः धर्मत्रयविचारश्च)
इसके सिवा ब्रह्मा, रुद्”र और बलासुरका वध करनेवाले सामर्थ्यशाली इन्द्र एवं सूर्य, तारापति चन्द्रमा, वायु, अग्नि, वरुण, आकाश, पृथ्वी तथा जो अवशिष्ट देवता बताये गये हैं, वे सब कया परमात्माके रचे हुए अपने मोक्षमार्गको नहीं जानते हैं? जिससे कि निश्चल, क्षयशून्य एवं अविनाशी मार्गका आश्रय नहीं लेते हैं?
janamejaya uvāca | etad-ṛte brahmā rudraś ca balāsura-vadha-samarthaḥ śakraḥ sūryaś ca tārāpatiś candramā vāyur agnir varuṇa ākāśaṃ pṛthivī ca ye cāvaśiṣṭā devāḥ kathitās te sarve kiṃ paramātmanā sṛṣṭaṃ svaṃ mokṣa-mārgaṃ na jānanti | yena niścalaṃ kṣaya-śūnyaṃ cāvināśi mārgaṃ nāśrayanti |
Janamejaya said: “Apart from these, do Brahmā, Rudra, mighty Indra who slew the demon Bala, and also Sūrya; the Moon, lord of the stars; Vāyu, Agni, Varuṇa, along with Space and Earth—and whatever other gods have been mentioned—do they all fail to know the path to liberation fashioned by the Supreme Self for them? Is that why they do not take refuge in that unwavering, decayless, and imperishable path?”
जनमेजय उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames a philosophical doubt: even exalted deities and cosmic principles may remain oriented to their functional roles and powers, yet not necessarily take refuge in the imperishable path of liberation. It highlights that mokṣa depends on knowledge and refuge in the unchanging reality, not merely on status, power, or cosmic office.
Janamejaya, in the didactic setting of the Śānti Parva, asks a probing question about the spiritual knowledge of major gods (Brahmā, Rudra, Indra, etc.). He wonders whether they do not know the Supreme Self’s intended path to liberation, and whether that ignorance explains why they do not adopt the unwavering, decayless, imperishable path.