Shloka 55

कर्णनिधनवृत्तान्तनिवेदनम् | Reporting Karṇa’s Fall to Yudhiṣṭhira

Devanagari script

दुष्करं परम॑ ज्ञानं तर्केणानुव्यवस्यति । श्रुतेर्थर्म इति होके वदन्ति बहवो जना:,धर्माधर्मके निर्णयके लिये तुम्हें संक्षेपसे कोई संकेत बताना पड़ेगा, जो इस प्रकार होगा। कुछ लोग परम ज्ञानरूप दुष्कर धर्मको तर्कके द्वारा जाननेका प्रयत्न करते हैं; परंतु एक श्रेणीके बहुसंख्यक मनुष्य ऐसा कहते हैं कि धर्मका ज्ञान वेदोंसे होता है

Transliteration

duṣkaraṃ paramaṃ jñānaṃ tarkeṇānuvyavasyati | śrutārtham iti loke vadanti bahavo janāḥ |

Translation

വായു പറഞ്ഞു: പരമവും ദുഷ്കരവുമായ ജ്ഞാനം ചിലർ തർക്കവാദത്തിലൂടെ അന്വേഷിക്കുന്നു; എന്നാൽ ലോകത്ത് അനേകർ ‘ധർമ്മത്തിന്റെ അർത്ഥം ശ്രുതി—അഥവാ വേദം—മൂലമാണ് അറിയപ്പെടുന്നത്’ എന്നു പറയുന്നു.

Word by Word

दुष्करम्difficult (to attain/understand)

परम्supreme, highest

ज्ञानम्knowledge

तर्केणby reasoning, through logic

अनुव्यवस्यतिdetermines, ascertains (after consideration)

श्रुतेin the Veda / in revelation

अर्थम्meaning, purport

इतिthus (quotative)

लोकेin the world, among people

वदन्तिsay, declare

बहवःmany

जनाःpeople

Speaker

वायुदेव उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vāyu (Vāyudeva)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

War Context

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

That determining dharma is difficult: some attempt it through tarka (reasoning), but many hold that dharma’s meaning is grounded in śruti (the Veda). The verse contrasts rational inquiry with scriptural authority as sources for ethical knowledge.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vāyudeva is giving guidance about how one may discern dharma and adharma. He notes competing approaches—logical argument versus reliance on Vedic revelation—preparing the listener for a concise criterion for moral decision-making.