Mahabharata 3.201.116 — Vana Parva, Adhyaya 201, Shloka 116
Dharma-vyādha’s Analysis of Moral Decline and the Mahābhūta–Guṇa Schema (धर्मव्याधोपदेशः)
इसलिये जाननेयोग्य परमात्मतत्त्वका ज्ञान वेदोंके द्वारा ही यत्नपूर्वक प्राप्त करना चाहिये; क्योंकि वह परमात्मतत्त्व वेदस्वरूप है। वेद उसका शरीर है। उस परमात्मतत्त्वको सहजभावसे प्राप्त करानेमें वेद हेतु है। यह जीवात्मा स्वयं समर्थ नहीं है; क्योंकि वह तत्त्व वेद्यका भी वेद्य है
tasmāj jñeyasya paramātma-tattvasya jñānaṃ vedair eva yatnapūrvakaṃ prāptavyaṃ; yataḥ sa paramātma-tattvaṃ veda-svarūpaḥ—vedāḥ tasya śarīram. vedā eva taṃ paramātma-tattvaṃ sahajabhāvena prāpayituṃ hetavaḥ. ayaṃ jīvātmā svayaṃ na samarthaḥ; yataḥ sa tattvaṃ vedyasyāpi vedyaḥ, jñātum atigahanaḥ. vedoktam āyur devānām āśiṣaś caiva karmaṇām; phalaty anuyugaṃ loke prabhāvaś ca śarīriṇām.
ຢຸທິສຖິຣະ ກ່າວວ່າ: «ດັ່ງນັ້ນ ຄວນພາກພຽນເພື່ອໄດ້ມາຊຶ່ງຄວາມຮູ້ແຫ່ງສັດຈະທຳສູງສຸດ ໂດຍອາໄສເວດາເທົ່ານັ້ນ; ເພາະສັດຈະທຳສູງສຸດນັ້ນມີສະພາບເປັນເວດາ—ເວດາເປັນດັ່ງກາຍຂອງພຣະອົງ. ເວດາແມ່ນວິທີການທີ່ນຳໃຫ້ບັນລຸສັດຈະທຳນັ້ນໄດ້ໂດຍຄວາມງ່າຍຕາມທຳມະຊາດ. ຈິດວິນຍານປະຈຳຕົວບໍ່ພໍດ້ວຍຕົນເອງ, ເພາະສັດຈະທຳນັ້ນລະອຽດລຶກລ້ຳ—ເປັນວັດຖຸໃຫ້ຮູ້ທີ່ເກີນກວ່າສິ່ງທີ່ຮູ້ໄດ້ຕາມປົກກະຕິ. ເວດາຍັງກ່າວເຖິງອາຍຸຂອງເທວະດາ ແລະພອນກັບຜົນຂອງກຳ; ດັ່ງນັ້ນ ໃນທຸກຍຸກ ອຳນາດແລະວາສະນາຂອງຜູ້ມີກາຍໃນໂລກ ຈຶ່ງບັງເກີດຜົນຕາມທີ່ກຳນົດໄວ້»។
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The passage asserts that realization of the Supreme Reality should be pursued through the Vedas, which are presented as the authoritative means and even the ‘body’ or manifest expression of that Reality; it also emphasizes the profound subtlety of the ultimate truth and the Vedic grounding of karma’s results across ages.
Yudhiṣṭhira is articulating a doctrinal point within the Vana Parva discourse: he explains why Vedic revelation is necessary for grasping the deepest metaphysical truth and links this to the Vedas’ statements about divine lifespan and the age-by-age fruition of karmic outcomes for embodied beings.
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