Shloka 2
पञ्चवर्णोत्पत्तिः — The Origin of the Five-Colored Fiery Being and Ritual-Disruptor Lineages
व्याध उवाच श्रुतिप्रमाणो धर्मोड्यमिति वृद्धानुशासनम् | सूक्ष्मा गतिहिं धर्मस्य बहुशाखा हानन्तिका,व्याध बोला--वृद्ध पुरुषोंका कहना है कि “धर्मके विषयमें केवल वेद ही प्रमाण है।' यह ठीक है, तो भी धर्मकी गति बड़ी सूक्ष्म है। उसके अनन्त भेद और अनेक शाखाएँ हैं
vyādha uvāca | śrutipramāṇo dharmo ’yam iti vṛddhānuśāsanam | sūkṣmā gatir hi dharmasya bahuśākhā hy anantikā ||
The hunter said: “The elders instruct that the Veda (Śruti) is the sole authority for dharma. That is indeed so; yet the course of dharma is exceedingly subtle—its distinctions are without end, and its branches are many.”
व्याध उवाच
Educational Q&A
Dharma is grounded in śruti (Vedic revelation) as an ultimate authority, yet its real-world application is subtle and complex, branching into countless context-dependent distinctions.
The hunter-teacher begins (or continues) instructing his listener by acknowledging the elders’ Veda-based definition of dharma, while warning that discerning dharma in practice is difficult because it has innumerable nuanced forms.