Shloka 82
Adhyātma–Adhibhūta–Adhidaivata Correspondences and the Triguṇa Lakṣaṇas (Śānti-parva 301)
मोक्षे दोषो महानेष प्राप्य सिद्धि गतानृषीन् | यदि तत्रैव विज्ञाने वर्तन्ते यतय: परे
yudhiṣṭhira uvāca | mokṣe doṣo mahān eṣa prāpya siddhiṃ gatān ṛṣīn | yadi tatraiva vijñāne vartante yatayaḥ pare ||
Yudhiṣṭhira dit : «Dans la délivrance (mokṣa), j’aperçois une grave difficulté au sujet des sages parvenus à la perfection. Si, même là, les ascètes suprêmes continuent d’évoluer dans un savoir distinct—si leur conscience conserve particularité et mémoire—alors je jugerais supérieur le dharma de l’engagement juste dans le monde (pravṛtti-dharma). Mais si l’on soutient que, dans l’état libéré, aucun connaître distinct n’est éprouvé, alors, englouti dans cette connaissance suprême, il y aurait absence de conscience spécifique ; quelle tristesse pourrait être plus grande ?»
युधिषछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
Yudhiṣṭhira raises a philosophical dilemma about liberation: either liberated sages retain distinct cognition (which seems to preserve individuality and thus looks like an imperfection), or they lose distinct cognition (which seems like a bleak loss of meaningful awareness). The verse frames the tension between engagement in righteous action (pravṛtti-dharma) and the ideal of transcendence (mokṣa).
In the Śānti Parva’s reflective teachings, Yudhiṣṭhira questions the nature of mokṣa and the experience of perfected sages. He challenges the coherence and desirability of liberation as described, pressing for clarity on whether liberated consciousness includes memory and differentiated knowledge or dissolves such distinctions entirely.