Shloka 1
वेदव्यासः, चातुर्होत्रम्, ऋग्वेदशाखाः
Vyāsa’s Veda-division and Ṛgveda lineages
आद्यो वेदश् चतुष्पादः शतसाहस्रसंमितः ततो दशगुणः कृत्स्नो यज्ञो ऽयं सर्वकामधुक्
ādyo vedaś catuṣpādaḥ śatasāhasrasaṃmitaḥ tato daśaguṇaḥ kṛtsno yajño 'yaṃ sarvakāmadhuk
The primal Veda is four-footed and measures a hundred thousand; yet this entire yajña is tenfold greater—like Kāmadhenu, the cow of plenty that grants every worthy desire.
Sage Parāśara (teaching Maitreya)
Speaker: Parasara
Topic: Measure and structure of the Veda and the supremacy/fruitfulness of yajña as a dharmic system
Teaching: Ethical
Quality: didactic
Concept: The Veda is vast and fourfold, yet the sacrificial order grounded in it is even more expansive and yields legitimate aims when performed in dharma.
Vedantic Theme: Dharma
Application: Treat duty and ritual (or disciplined service) as an offering—aligning intention, means, and ethical constraints—rather than as mere desire-fulfillment.
Vishishtadvaita: Frames karma (yajña) as meaningful when oriented within a theistic Vedic order, consistent with Vishishtadvaita’s integration of duty and devotion as service to the Lord.
Vishnu Form: Narayana (cosmic)
Bhakti Type: Dasya
Lakshmi Presence: Sri
FAQs
This verse elevates yajña as tenfold greater than the (measured) Veda itself, portraying sacrifice as a living, wish-fulfilling power that sustains prosperity and dharmic order.
Parāśara frames the Veda as foundational and fourfold, yet teaches that yajña—Vedic knowledge enacted as sacred duty—surpasses it in efficacy, because it operationalizes dharma in the world.
By glorifying yajña as world-sustaining and abundantly fruitful, the verse aligns with Vaishnava thought where cosmic order and human welfare are upheld through divinely rooted dharma—ultimately oriented toward the Supreme Reality who is the ground of all sacred law.