Shloka 22
अन्तर्वन-विद्यारण्योपमा
The Allegory of the Inner Forest of Knowledge
कृशाशा: सुव्रताशाश्च॒ तपसा दग्धकिल्बिषा: । आत्मन्यात्मानमाविश्य ब्रह्माणं समुपासते,जिनकी आशा क्षीण हो गयी है, जो उत्तम व्रतके पालनकी इच्छा रखते हैं। तपस्यासे जिनके सारे पाप दग्ध हो गये हैं। वे ही पुरुष अपनी बुद्धिको आत्मनिष्ठ करके परब्रह्मकी उपासना करते हैं
kṛśāśāḥ suvratāśāś ca tapasa dagdhakilbiṣāḥ | ātmany ātmānam āviśya brahmāṇaṃ samupāsate ||
Those whose worldly hopes have withered, who long to uphold noble vows, and whose sins have been burned away by austerity—such persons, turning the mind inward and establishing the self in the self, worship the Supreme Brahman. The verse frames spiritual life as an ethical purification: restraint, disciplined vows, and inner recollection culminate in contemplation of Brahman rather than pursuit of external rewards.
ब्राह्मण उवाच
Educational Q&A
True worship of Brahman is grounded in ethical purification and inner discipline: when desires and external expectations fade, one embraces noble vows, purifies wrongdoing through tapas, and then turns inward—fixing the mind in the self—to contemplate the Supreme Reality.
A brahmin speaker describes the qualities of genuine spiritual aspirants. Rather than praising ritual or worldly success, he highlights renunciation of hopes, commitment to virtuous vows, purification through austerity, and inward meditation culminating in worship of Brahman.