Shloka 1
Sāttvika-vṛtta-kathana (Brahmā on the Conduct of Sattva) — Chapter 38
अफ-्#-रात अष्टात्रिशो5 ध्याय: सत्त्वगुणके कार्यका वर्णन और उसके जाननेका फल ब्रह्मोवाच अतः: पर प्रवक्ष्यामि तृतीयं गुणमुत्तमम् । सर्वभूतहितं लोके सतां धर्ममनिन्दितम्,ब्रह्माजीने कहा--महर्षियो! अब मैं तीसरे उत्तम गुण (सत्त्वगुण)-का वर्णन करूँगा, जो जगत्में सम्पूर्ण प्राणियोंका हितकारी और श्रेष्ठ पुरुषोंका प्रशंसनीय धर्म है
brahmovāca | ataḥ paraṃ pravakṣyāmi tṛtīyaṃ guṇam uttamam | sarvabhūtahitaṃ loke satāṃ dharmam aninditam ||
Brahmā said: “Now, further, I shall declare the third and highest quality—sattva. It is a way of life praised by the good, blameless in conduct, and beneficial to all beings in the world.”
वायुदेव उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse introduces sattva-guṇa as the highest mode, defined ethically as a blameless dharma that promotes the welfare of all beings and is endorsed by the virtuous.
Brahmā begins a new section of instruction, announcing that he will now describe the third guṇa—sattva—and its character as universally beneficial and morally irreproachable.