Shloka 26
अध्याय ३३१: नारायणकथा-प्रशंसा तथा नारदस्य श्वेतद्वीप-निवृत्ति एवं बदरी-आगमनम् | Chapter 331: Praise of the Nārāyaṇa Narrative; Nārada’s Return from Śvetadvīpa and Arrival at Badarī
शब्दे स्पर्शे च रूपे च गन्धेषु च रसेषु च । नोपभोगात् परं किंचिद् धनिनो वाधनस्य च
śabde sparśe ca rūpe ca gandheṣu ca raseṣu ca | nopabhogāt paraṃ kiñcid dhaninō vā dhanasya ca ||
धनी हो या निर्धन—शब्द, स्पर्श, रूप, रस और गन्ध आदि विषयों में जो थोड़ा-सा सुख प्रतीत होता है, वह केवल उपभोग के समय ही होता है; उपभोग के बाद नहीं।
नारद उवाच
Educational Q&A
Sensory pleasure is momentary and confined to the time of experience; neither wealth nor poverty changes this basic fact. Therefore, lasting well-being should not be sought in sense-objects but in restraint and inner steadiness.
In Śānti Parva’s instructional setting, Nārada is delivering a reflective teaching: he analyzes the five sense-objects and argues that their ‘happiness’ does not endure beyond the act of enjoyment, undercutting the assumption that wealth guarantees lasting satisfaction.