Shloka 23
भिक्षुलक्षणम्—एकचर्याः, अहिंसा, कैवल्याश्रमः
Marks of the Mendicant: Solitary Wandering, Non-Injury, and the Kaivalya-Discipline
जो शब्दब्रह्म (वेद) में पारंगत होकर परब्रह्मके तत्त्वका निश्चय कर चुका है और सदा ब्रह्मज्ञानमें ही स्थित रहता है, उसे ही देवतालोग ब्राह्मण मानते हैं ।।
antaḥsthaṃ ca bahiṣṭhaṃ ca sādhiyajñādhidaivatam | jñānānvitā hi paśyanti te devās tāta te dvijāḥ ||
Vyāsa dit : «Ceux qui sont pourvus de la vraie connaissance voient le Divin au-dedans comme au-dehors, avec la divinité qui préside au sacrifice. Ceux-là, mon enfant, sont les “deux-fois-nés” que même les dieux reconnaissent comme de véritables brāhmaṇas.»
व्यास उवाच
Educational Q&A
True brāhmaṇahood is defined by realized knowledge: the wise directly perceive the Divine both within the self and in the external world, including the divine principle presiding over sacrifice. Recognition by the gods is tied to insight and steadiness in brahmajñāna, not merely to ritual performance or birth.
In Śānti Parva’s instruction on dharma and spiritual excellence, Vyāsa explains to the listener (addressed as ‘tāta’) the marks of a genuine brāhmaṇa: one who, through knowledge, sees the indwelling and outward presence of the sacred and understands the deeper divine basis of yajña.