Shloka 76
मायामोह-प्रवर्तन, वेदमार्ग-बहिष्कार, तथा पाषण्ड-संसर्ग-दोषः
Māyāmoha’s Delusion, Rejection of the Vedic Path, and the Fault of Heretical Association
पुनस् तयोक्तं तज् ज्ञात्वा सत्यं सत्यवतां वरः कानने स निराहारस् तत्याज स्वं कलेवरम्
punas tayoktaṃ taj jñātvā satyaṃ satyavatāṃ varaḥ kānane sa nirāhāras tatyāja svaṃ kalevaram
Then, understanding the truth of what those two had spoken, the noblest among the keepers of truth withdrew into the forest; there, renouncing all food, he abandoned his bodily frame.
Sage Parāśara (narrating to Maitreya)
Speaker: Parasara
Teaching: Ethical
Quality: authoritative
Concept: When truth is recognized, one should relinquish attachment and accept disciplined renunciation, even at the cost of the body, to realign with the highest good.
Vedantic Theme: Moksha
Application: Practice periodic withdrawal from overstimulation (digital/consumer austerity), cultivate truthfulness, and adopt disciplined simplicity that supports steady devotion and clarity.
Vishishtadvaita: Liberation is pursued through surrendering egoic identity and aligning the self’s will with the Lord’s order; the body is a real instrument that can be relinquished without denying its reality.
Vishnu Form: Para-Brahman
Bhakti Type: shanta
FAQs
The verse presents satya as a kingly and spiritual absolute—so binding that the “best among the truthful” relinquishes even life rather than deviate from what is known to be true.
Parāśara uses genealogy episodes to show dharma in action: when worldly roles reach their limit, the righteous may turn to the forest and austerity, making renunciation a continuation of duty rather than an escape.
Even when Vishnu is not named in the verse, the episode reinforces a Vaishnava worldview where cosmic order is ultimately grounded in the Supreme Reality (Vishnu), and truthfulness aligns the individual with that sustaining order.