Shloka 42
अव्यक्त-गुण-पुरुषविवेकः | Avyakta, Guṇas, and Discrimination of Puruṣa
मनुष्यत्वाच्च निरयं प्यायेणोपगच्छति । य एवं वेत्ति नित्यं वै निरात्मा55त्मगुणैवत:
manuṣyatvācca nirayaṃ pyāyeṇopagacchati | ya evaṃ vetti nityaṃ vai nirātmātmaguṇair iva ||
Dijo Vasiṣṭha: «Aun por el solo hecho de ser humano, uno puede caer al infierno por la decadencia moral y el abandono a los placeres. Pero quien comprende constantemente esta verdad—viendo la realidad sin yo (no egoica) como si estuviera marcada por cualidades del yo—permanece lúcido y no es arrastrado por esas cualidades».
वसिष्ठ उवाच
Educational Q&A
Human life easily slips into suffering when one allows faults to grow—through indulgence, heedlessness, and ego-driven conduct. Continuous discernment about the nature of self and qualities (guṇas) prevents one from being overpowered by them and from accruing actions that lead to ‘hellish’ consequences.
In Śānti Parva’s instructional setting, Vasiṣṭha speaks as a moral and spiritual teacher, warning about the dangers inherent in human weakness and emphasizing steady knowledge/discrimination as the safeguard against downfall.