Shloka 40
Brahma-vidyā: Satya–Tapas and the Enumeration of Tattvas
Arjuna–Vāsudeva framed dialogue
ब्रह्मचारिकमेवाहुराश्रमं प्रथमं पदम् । गार्हस्थ्यं तु द्वितीयं स्याद् वानप्रस्थमत: परम् | ततः परं तु विज्ञेयमध्यात्मं परमं पदम्
brahmacārikam evāhur āśramaṁ prathamaṁ padam | gārhasthyaṁ tu dvitīyaṁ syād vānaprastham ataḥ param || tataḥ paraṁ tu vijñeyam adhyātmaṁ paramaṁ padam |
Di antara tahap kehidupan, brahmacarya dinyatakan sebagai yang pertama. Grihastha adalah yang kedua, lalu vanaprastha. Melampaui semuanya, hendaknya dipahami bahwa kedudukan tertinggi adalah jalan batin—sannyasa—di mana pengetahuan tentang Diri menjadi yang utama.
वायुदेव उवाच
Educational Q&A
Human life is structured as progressive āśramas: disciplined learning (brahmacarya), responsible social duty (gārhasthya), gradual withdrawal (vānaprastha), and finally the supreme pursuit—adhyātma, the inward realization of the Self, identified with renunciant life.
Vāyu is instructing the listener by outlining the traditional sequence of life-stages and emphasizing that the culmination of this progression is the highest goal: spiritual realization (adhyātma), associated with renunciation.