Narada Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 38
Janaka’s Quest for Liberation; Pañcaśikha’s Sāṅkhya on Renunciation, Elements, Guṇas, and the Deathless State
वृथा ज्ञानं यदन्यञ्च येनैतन्नोपलभ्यते । ऋमसंवत्सरौ तिष्यः शीतोष्णोऽथ प्रियाप्रिये ॥ ३८ ॥
vṛthā jñānaṃ yadanyañca yenaitannopalabhyate | ṛmasaṃvatsarau tiṣyaḥ śītoṣṇo'tha priyāpriye || 38 ||
Tout autre savoir est vain—quel qu’il soit—si, par lui, on ne réalise pas « Ceci » (la vérité suprême). Car l’on demeure alors pris dans de simples contraires : les saisons et l’année, l’astre Tiṣya, le froid et le chaud, l’agréable et le désagréable.
Sanatkumara (teaching Narada)
Vrata: none
Primary Rasa: shanta
Secondary Rasa: vairagya
FAQs
It declares that learning has value only when it culminates in direct realization of the highest truth; otherwise, one remains bound to cyclical time and the experience of dualities like pleasure/pain and heat/cold.
By implying that information alone is insufficient, it supports the bhakti principle that true knowing is transformative—leading to lived realization of the Lord/Truth, not merely conceptual mastery—so devotion must mature into inner experience beyond likes and dislikes.
It alludes to Jyotiṣa (Vedic astrology) through the mention of Tiṣya (Puṣya) and to Kāla-vicāra (time reckoning) via seasons and the year, while stressing that such technical knowledge is secondary unless it aids liberation.