Shloka 35
Adhyāya 262: Śabda-brahman, Para-brahman, and the Ethics of Tyāga
Kapila–Syūmaraśmi Saṃvāda
निराशिषमनारम्भं निर्नमस्कारमस्तुतिम् | अक्षीणं क्षीणकर्माणं त॑ देवा ब्राह्म॒णं विदु:
nirāśiṣam anārambhaṁ nirnamaskāram astutim | akṣīṇaṁ kṣīṇakarmāṇaṁ taṁ devā brāhmaṇaṁ viduḥ ||
Chulādhāra dit : «Les dieux reconnaissent comme un véritable brāhmaṇa celui qui est sans désirs, qui n’entreprend aucune action par soif de résultats, qui se tient à l’écart des démonstrations de salutations et d’éloges, dont le dharma ne s’est pas flétri, et dont les liens du karma se sont usés.»
चुलाधार उवाच
Educational Q&A
A brāhmaṇa is defined by inner qualities—desirelessness, non-attachment to results, freedom from honor-seeking rituals of praise and salutation, steadfast dharma, and the exhaustion of karmic bondage—rather than by birth, status, or outward display.
In the Śānti Parva’s didactic dialogue, Chūlādhāra is instructing on ethical and spiritual criteria for true nobility. He reframes social identity (brāhmaṇa) as a moral-spiritual attainment recognized even by the gods.