Shloka 35
शरीरे न च ते व्याधिर् अस्माभिर् उपलक्ष्यते निर्वेदः किंनिमित्तस् ते कथ्यतां यदि विद्यते
śarīre na ca te vyādhir asmābhir upalakṣyate nirvedaḥ kiṃnimittas te kathyatāṃ yadi vidyate
We perceive no illness in your body. What, then, is the cause of this weariness and dispassion? If there is a reason, tell it to us.
Unspecified interlocutor (a concerned questioner within the narrative frame; exact identification depends on the immediate surrounding verses of Adhyaya 11).
Speaker: Parasara
Topic: Distinguishing bodily illness from spiritual/world-weariness; asking Dhruva to disclose the cause
Teaching: Ethical
Quality: revealing
Concept: Suffering may be subtle and mental (mānasika) rather than physical; discernment requires inquiry into causes.
Vedantic Theme: Atman
Application: Practice self-inquiry: name the real cause of agitation instead of masking it as generalized ‘dispassion’.
Vishishtadvaita: Hints that the soul’s unrest is resolved not by bodily remedies but by turning toward the Supreme who is the true refuge.
FAQs
This verse frames dispassion as a meaningful inner condition that deserves inquiry, often serving as the threshold for higher teaching on dharma, the transient nature of worldly life, and devotion to Vishnu.
By having a questioner first rule out worldly causes (like bodily illness) and then ask for the inner cause, the text naturally opens a space for philosophical teaching—moving from symptom to root understanding.
Even when Vishnu is not named in a given verse, the Purana’s method is to lead from human dissatisfaction with samsara toward the stabilizing truth of Vishnu as the supreme ground of order, refuge, and liberation.