Shloka 436
Agni’s Withdrawal to the Forest and Identification with Āṅgirasa (अग्न्याङ्गिरस-इतिहासः)
धर्मव्याधं तत: पृच्छ गत्वा तु मिथिलां पुरीम् । भगवन्! तो भी मेरा विचार यह है कि तुम्हें धर्मका यथार्थ ज्ञान नहीं है। विप्रवर! यदि तुम परम धर्म क्या है, यह नहीं जानते तो मिथिलापुरीमें धर्मव्याधके पास जाकर पूछो
dharmavyādhaṁ tataḥ pṛccha gatvā tu mithilāṁ purīm | bhagavan! tava me vicāra eṣaḥ—tvaṁ dharmasya yathārthaṁ jñānaṁ na vetti | vipravara! yadi tvaṁ paraṁ dharmaṁ kiṁ iti na jānāsi, tarhi mithilāpurīṁ gatvā dharmavyādhasya samīpe pṛccha |
Dijo el brahmana: «Entonces ve a la ciudad de Mithilā y pregunta al cazador justo. Venerable señor, este es mi juicio: aún no conoces el dharma en su verdadero sentido. Oh mejor de los brāhmaṇas, si no entiendes cuál es el dharma supremo, ve a Mithilā y pregunta al dharma-vyādha».
ब्राह्मण उवाच
Educational Q&A
True understanding of dharma is measured by lived conduct and insight, not merely by status or learning; one should seek instruction from whoever genuinely embodies dharma—even a hunter—when one’s own knowledge is incomplete.
A brahmin addresses another revered person and directs him to Mithilā to consult the ‘dharma-vyādha,’ asserting that the listener lacks accurate knowledge of dharma and should learn the nature of supreme dharma from that exemplary figure.