Shloka 54
नारद–शुक संवादः
Impermanence, Svabhāva, and Śuka’s Resolve for Yoga
अजसं जन्मनिधनं चिन्तयित्वा त्रयीमिमाम् | परित्यज्य क्षयमिह अक्षयं धर्ममास्थित:
ajasaṃ janma-nidhanaṃ cintayitvā trayīm imām | parityajya kṣayam iha akṣayaṃ dharmam āsthitaḥ ||
Merenungkan bahwa roda kelahiran dan kematian berputar tanpa henti, hendaknya seseorang memahami bahwa tata ritual Weda (trayi) beserta buah-buahnya bersifat fana; lalu melepaskan keterikatan pada tujuan yang sementara itu, dan dalam hidup ini juga berlindung pada Dharma yang tak binasa.
याज़्ञवल्क्य उवाच
Educational Q&A
Because birth and death continue without cessation, one should see ritual actions and their promised rewards as transient and instead commit oneself to the imperishable Dharma—an orientation toward lasting spiritual-ethical realization rather than perishable gains.
In the Śānti Parva’s instruction on peace and liberation, the sage Yājñavalkya speaks as a teacher, urging a shift from reliance on Vedic ritualism aimed at finite results to the pursuit of an enduring, liberative Dharma grounded in insight into saṃsāra.