Shloka 8
Sanatsujāta–Dhṛtarāṣṭra Saṃvāda: Pramāda as Mṛtyu
Chapter 42
तदर्थमुक्ते तप एतदिज्या ताभ्यामसौ पुण्यमुपैति विद्वान । पुण्येन पापं विनिहत्य पश्चात् संजायते ज्ञानविदीपितात्मा
tad-artham ukte tapa etad-ijyā tābhyām asau puṇyam upaiti vidvān | puṇyena pāpaṁ vinihatya paścāt sañjāyate jñāna-vidīpitātmā ||
Demi mencapai tujuan tertinggi itu, Weda menetapkan tapa dan pemujaan yajña. Dengan keduanya, seorang terpelajar yang teguh dalam śruti memperoleh kebajikan (puṇya). Lalu, melalui kebajikan itu—sebagai tindakan tanpa pamrih—ia memusnahkan dosa; setelah dosa sirna, batinnya tersinari oleh pengetahuan.
सनत्सुजात उवाच
Educational Q&A
Austerity (tapas) and sacrificial worship (ijyā/yajña), as taught in the Veda, generate purifying merit. When performed in a selfless spirit, that merit removes sin and prepares the inner instrument for the arising of illuminating knowledge.
Sanatsujāta is instructing his listener on the spiritual progression endorsed by scripture: disciplined practice and worship lead to merit; merit cleanses moral impurity; and, once purified, the person’s inner self becomes fit for the dawn of liberating knowledge.