Shloka 57

Devanagari script

तपसा योज्य सो>>त्मान श्वेतद्वीपात्‌ परं हि यत्‌ । तेज इत्यभिविख्यातं स्वयंभासा&$वभासितम्‌,वे अपने आपको तपस्यामें लगाकर श्वेतद्वीपसे भी परे प्रकाशमान तेजोमय स्वरूपसे विख्यात हैं। उनका वह तेज अपने ही प्रकाशसे प्रकाशित है

Transliteration

tapasā yojya so ’tmānaṁ śvetadvīpāt paraṁ hi yat | teja ity abhivikhyātaṁ svayaṁbhāsā ’vabhāsitam ||

Translation

Nārada said: “By yoking oneself to austerity, one reaches That which lies beyond Śvetadvīpa—celebrated as pure Radiance. That Radiance shines by its own light, self-luminous and not dependent on anything else.”

Word by Word

तपसाby austerity

योज्यhaving yoked/engaged

स्व-आत्मानम्one's own self

श्वेतद्वीपात्from Śvetadvīpa

परम्beyond, further

हिindeed

यत्which/that (entity)

तेजःsplendor, light

इतिthus

अभिविख्यातम्well-known, renowned

स्वयम्by itself

भासाby (its) light

अवभासितम्illuminated, made manifest

Speaker

नारद उवाच

Characters & Entities

Nārada

Śvetadvīpa

Tejas (self-luminous radiance)

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?

Austerity and disciplined inner practice (tapas) is presented as a means to realize the supreme, self-luminous Reality—described as ‘Tejas’—which is beyond even exalted divine realms like Śvetadvīpa and shines by its own inherent light.

What is happening in the narrative?

Nārada is describing a transcendent principle encountered through tapas: a supreme radiance beyond Śvetadvīpa. The verse emphasizes that this ultimate ‘Tejas’ is self-manifest (svayaṁbhāsā), not illuminated by any external source.