Shloka 38
Vidyā–Avidyā and the Twenty-Fifth Principle
Sāṃkhya–Yoga Clarification
सर्वात्मनानुकुर्वीत गृहस्थ: कर्मनिश्चयम् । दाक्ष्येण हव्यकव्यार्थ स्वधर्मे विचरन् नृप
sarvātmanānukurvīta gṛhasthaḥ karmaniścayam | dākṣyeṇa havyakavyārtha svadharme vicaran nṛpa naraśvara |
Parāśara dit : «Ô roi, seigneur parmi les hommes, le maître de maison doit, de tout son être, prendre une résolution ferme quant à ses devoirs propres. Évoluant dans son svadharma, qu’il accomplisse avec adresse les rites destinés aux dieux et aux ancêtres—tels les sacrifices et le śrāddha—afin que sa vie soit stable, responsable et bénéfique à l’ordre sacré.»
पराशर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches that a householder must wholeheartedly commit to his prescribed duties and perform them with competence—especially the obligations toward gods (yajña/havya) and ancestors (śrāddha/kavya)—as an essential expression of svadharma.
In Śānti Parva’s instruction on dharma, the sage Parāśara addresses a king, advising him on the proper conduct of the householder stage: firm resolve in duty and skillful performance of sacrificial and ancestral rites.