Shanti Parva Adhyaya 19 Shloka 9 - Mahabharata | Spanish | Vedapath

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Shloka 9

धर्मसूक्ष्मे त्यागप्रधान्यविचारः

Subtle Dharma and the Primacy of Renunciation

Devanagari script

तपस्त्यागो5विधिरिति निश्चयस्त्वेष धीमताम्‌ । परं परं ज्याय एपषां येषां नैश्रेयसी मति:

Transliteration

tapas tyāgo ’vidhir iti niścayas tveṣa dhīmatām | paraṃ paraṃ jyāya eṣāṃ yeṣāṃ naiśreyasī matiḥ ||

Translation

Yudhiṣṭhira dijo: «Entre los sabios, ésta es la conclusión asentada: la austeridad, la renuncia y aquello que está más allá de los preceptos rituales. Para quienes tienen el entendimiento fijo en el bien supremo (la bienaventuranza final), cada término sucesivo es superior al precedente: la renuncia supera a la austeridad, y el conocimiento que trasciende el mero rito supera a ambos.»

Word by Word

तपःausterity, penance

त्यागःrenunciation, giving up

अविधिःnon-ritual, absence of prescribed rule (i.e., transcending ritual)

इतिthus, as (quotation marker)

निश्चयःdecision, conclusion

तुbut, indeed

एषःthis

धीमताम्of the wise

परम्the later/higher (one)

ज्यायःbetter, superior

एषाम्of these (things/people)

येषाम्of whom/whose

नैश्रेयसीleading to the highest good (final beatitude)

मतिःunderstanding, intention, mind

Speaker

युधिछिर उवाच

Characters & Entities

Yudhiṣṭhira

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Geographic Context

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse ranks spiritual means for those seeking the highest good: austerity (tapas), renunciation (tyāga), and a state/knowledge beyond mere ritual injunctions (avidhi). It teaches a progressive hierarchy where inner freedom and liberating insight are superior to external discipline alone.

What is happening in the narrative?

In the Śānti Parva’s instruction-oriented setting, Yudhiṣṭhira articulates a reflective conclusion about the relative value of spiritual practices, emphasizing that seekers oriented toward ultimate welfare should move from austerity to renunciation and finally to liberating understanding beyond ritual formalism.