Shloka 3
Brahmopadeśa: Ahiṃsā, Jñāna, and the Kṣetrajña–Sattva Analysis
Chapter 49
अनित्यं नित्यमित्येके नास्त्यस्तीत्यपि चापरे | एकरूपं द्विधेत्येके व्यामिश्रमिति चापरे,कोई कहते हैं कि धर्म अनित्य है और कोई उसे नित्य कहते हैं। दूसरे कहते हैं कि धर्म नामकी कोई वस्तु है ही नहीं। कोई कहते हैं कि अवश्य है। कोई कहते हैं कि एक ही धर्म दो प्रकारका है तथा कुछ लोग कहते हैं कि धर्म मिश्रित है
anityaṁ nityam ity eke nāsty astīty api cāpare | ekarūpaṁ dvidhety eke vyāmiśram iti cāpare ||
Vāyu said: “Some declare dharma to be impermanent, while others insist it is eternal. Some deny that there is any such thing as dharma at all, while others affirm its existence. Some say dharma is one in essence yet appears in two forms, and others maintain that it is a mixed and composite reality.”
वायुदेव उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights that dharma is interpreted in sharply different ways—impermanent vs. eternal, existent vs. nonexistent, single yet twofold, or mixed—urging the listener to recognize the complexity of moral truth and the limits of simplistic definitions.
Vāyudeva speaks as a teacher-figure, presenting a survey of competing philosophical positions about dharma, setting the stage for a deeper clarification of what dharma is and how it should be understood or practiced.