Shloka 1
धर्मलक्षण-प्रश्नः (Marks and Sources of Dharma) | Chapter 251: Inquiry into the Definition of Dharma
ऑपन- मा बछ। -्स:ॉ् द्विपज्चाशर्दाधिकद्विशततमो< ध्याय: शरीरमें पञ्चभूतोंके कार्य और गुणोंकी पहचान व्यास उवाच दन्द्वानि मोक्षजिज्ञासुरर्थधर्मावनुछित: । वक्त्रा गुणवता शिष्य: श्राव्य: पूर्वमिदं महत्
vyāsa uvāca | śarīrād vipramuktaṃ hi sūkṣmabhūtaṃ śarīriṇam | karmabhiḥ paripaśyanti śāstroktaiḥ śāstravedinaḥ ||
Dijo Vyāsa: «¡Hijo mío! Aquel que, cumpliendo con artha y dharma, soporta con firmeza los pares opuestos—placer y dolor—y mantiene el anhelo de conocer la mokṣa, a ese discípulo lleno de fe debe el maestro virtuoso hacerle oír primero esta gran ciencia del espíritu.»
व्यास उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches that the true self (śarīrin/ātman) is subtle and distinct from the physical body, and that this distinction is realized by those trained in śāstra through scripturally prescribed disciplines (karmabhiḥ) that culminate in clear perception (paripaśyanti).
Vyāsa is instructing within the Mokṣadharma section of Śānti Parva, introducing a yogic-śāstric method of insight: learned practitioners, following śāstra-based practices, come to ‘see’ the embodied self as separate from bodily identity.