Shloka 36
Vidyā–Avidyā and the Twenty-Fifth Principle
Sāṃkhya–Yoga Clarification
मानिनां कुलजातानां नित्य शास्त्रार्थचक्षुषाम् । क्रियाधर्मविमुक्तानामशक््त्या संवृतात्मनाम्
mānināṁ kulajātānāṁ nityaśāstrārthacakṣuṣām | kriyādharmavimuktānām aśaktyā saṁvṛtātmanām ||
Dijo Parāśara: «Incluso las acciones mundanas realizadas por hombres honrados y bien nacidos, que ven constantemente con el ‘ojo’ del sentido de las Escrituras, y asimismo las de aquellos que—por incapacidad—quedan apartados del deber ritual y tienen velado el yo interior, inevitablemente acaban en ruina. De ello se sigue que, para tales personas, no hay en el mundo obra verdaderamente saludable aparte de la austeridad (tapas): sólo ella purifica y afianza el ser cuando la acción ordinaria no logra dar fruto duradero.»
पराशर उवाच
Educational Q&A
Worldly action (laukika karma) is unstable and can be rendered fruitless even for the respected and learned, and also for those unable to perform prescribed duties; therefore disciplined austerity (tapas) is presented as the reliable ‘good practice’ that purifies and supports inner realization when ordinary action cannot secure lasting good.
In Śānti Parva’s instruction on dharma and liberation-oriented conduct, the sage Parāśara addresses the limits of social status, learning, and ritual performance, arguing that when action is compromised—by circumstance, incapacity, or inner obscuration—tapas becomes the principal means of ethical and spiritual uplift.