Shloka 2
उन्नतेषूतन्नता षट्सु सूक्ष्मा सूक्ष्मेषु पडचसु । गम्भीरा त्रिषु गम्भीरेष्वियं रक्ता च पउचसु
unnateṣu utannatā ṣaṭsu sūkṣmā sūkṣmeṣu paḍacasu | gambhīrā triṣu gambhīreṣv iyaṃ raktā ca paucaṣu
Nārada said: “This (principle/quality) rises among the exalted and bends among the bent; it is subtle in six, subtler still among the subtle; it is deep in three, deeper among the deep; and it is also ‘red’ in five—colored by passion and attachment.”
नारद उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse presents a riddle-like moral psychology: an inner principle (often read as desire, disposition, or the mind’s coloring) changes intensity and character according to the company or domain—becoming subtler among the subtle, deeper among the deep, and passion-tinted where attachments prevail—implying the need for vigilance and self-mastery.
Nārada speaks in a compact, enigmatic style, using numbered sets (‘six’, ‘three’, ‘five’) to describe how a single quality manifests differently across different categories. Such verses typically function as didactic riddles within counsel or instruction in the Udyoga Parva’s pre-war deliberative setting.