Shloka 113
Dharma-vyādha’s Analysis of Moral Decline and the Mahābhūta–Guṇa Schema (धर्मव्याधोपदेशः)
विदितार्थस्तु वेदानां परिवेद प्रयोजनम् । उद्विजेत् स तु वेदेभ्यो दावाग्नेरिव मानव:,जब मनुष्य वेदोंके वास्तविक प्रयोजनको जान जाता है, तब वह वेदवेत्ता मानव (कर्मविधायक) समस्त वेदोंसे उसी प्रकार उपरत हो जाता है, जैसे मनुष्य दावानलसे हट जाते हैं
viditārthas tu vedānāṃ pariveda prayojanam | udvijet sa tu vedebhyo dāvāgner iva mānavaḥ ||
Yudhiṣṭhira said: “When a person has truly understood the meaning of the Vedas and has fully discerned their real purpose, that knower of the Vedas turns away from the Vedas that merely prescribe ritual action—just as people withdraw from a raging forest-fire.”
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches that once one grasps the true aim of the Vedas—inner realization and right understanding—one naturally outgrows mere ritual injunctions (karma-kāṇḍa). Clinging to ritual alone then feels dangerous and limiting, like staying near a forest-fire.
Yudhiṣṭhira is reflecting on the hierarchy of spiritual pursuits: the Vedas guide action and duty, but their deeper intent points beyond ritual to insight. He uses the vivid image of people retreating from a wildfire to describe turning away from purely action-oriented Vedic prescriptions after realizing their ultimate purpose.