Narada Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 13
Śreyas and Paramārtha: The Ribhu–Nidāgha Teaching on Non-Dual Self
Advaita
देवताराधनं कृत्वा धनसंपदमिच्छति । पुत्रानिच्छति राज्यं च श्रेयस्तस्यैव तन्नृप ॥ १३ ॥
devatārādhanaṃ kṛtvā dhanasaṃpadamicchati | putrānicchati rājyaṃ ca śreyastasyaiva tannṛpa || 13 ||
Après avoir rendu un culte à la divinité, on désire richesse et prospérité ; on désire des fils et même la royauté. Pourtant, ô roi, le bien suprême (śreyas) appartient à ce dévot lui-même.
Sanatkumara (teaching a king in the Moksha Dharma dialogue)
Vrata: none
Primary Rasa: shanta
Secondary Rasa: bhakti
FAQs
It contrasts common goal-oriented worship (seeking wealth, sons, or power) with the deeper outcome of devotion—śreyas, the highest spiritual good that ultimately accrues to the worshipper.
It shows that even when devotion begins with worldly desires, sincere worship still leads the devotee toward a higher blessing—inner uplift and spiritual welfare—hinting that bhakti can mature from kāmya aims to mokṣa-oriented śreyas.
The verse reflects the ritual logic of phala (results) in upāsanā/ārādhana—an applied Dharma-śāstra principle about intention and outcomes—rather than a specific technical Vedanga like Vyākaraṇa or Jyotiṣa.