Shloka 38
मायामोह-प्रवर्तन, वेदमार्ग-बहिष्कार, तथा पाषण्ड-संसर्ग-दोषः
Māyāmoha’s Delusion, Rejection of the Vedic Path, and the Fault of Heretical Association
यस् तु संत्यज्य गार्हस्थ्यं वानप्रस्थो न जायते परिव्राड् वापि मैत्रेय स नग्नः पापकृन् नरः
yas tu saṃtyajya gārhasthyaṃ vānaprastho na jāyate parivrāḍ vāpi maitreya sa nagnaḥ pāpakṛn naraḥ
Quien abandona el estado de cabeza de familia y no entra en la disciplina del morador del bosque, sino que, oh Maitreya, se hace un renunciante errante, ese hombre está ‘desnudo’ de dharma y es hacedor de pecado.
Sage Parāśara (in instruction to Maitreya)
Speaker: Parasara
Topic: Proper observance of āśrama-dharma and the fault of premature/irregular renunciation
Teaching: Ethical
Quality: authoritative
Concept: Renunciation that abandons the householder stage without entering the disciplined vānaprastha is adharma and becomes sinful.
Vedantic Theme: Dharma
Application: Adopt life-transitions with preparation and accountability—do not use ‘spirituality’ to evade duties to family, society, and one’s own sādhanā.
Vishishtadvaita: Dharma is service to Bhagavān’s order (niyati); abandoning one’s ordained role disrupts the body-of-God (jagat) harmony.
FAQs
This verse stresses that renunciation is not merely a change of dress or status; it must arise from the disciplined progression of dharma, preserving both personal purity and social order.
By calling such a renunciant “naked,” Parāśara implies a lack of the preparatory austerity and inner ripening that vānaprastha provides before true wandering renunciation.
Even when Vishnu is not named, the teaching assumes dharma as Vishnu’s cosmic ordinance: right conduct and right renunciation are ways of aligning life with the Supreme Order sustained by Vishnu.