Shloka 8

Vānaprastha-vṛtti and the Transition toward the Fourth Āśrama (वानप्रस्थवृत्तिः चतुर्थाश्रमोपक्रमश्च)

Devanagari script

एवं होतेन योगेन युज्जानो होवमन्ततः । अपि जिज्ञासमानो5पि शब्दब्रह्मातिवर्तते,इस प्रकार सिद्धिपर्यन्त इस योगका अभ्यास करनेवाला पुरुष यदि ब्रह्मका जिज्ञासु हो तो वेदोक्त सकाम कर्मोकी सीमाको लाँघ जाता है

Transliteration

evaṁ hotena yogena yujjāno hovam antataḥ | api jijñāsamāno 'pi śabda-brahmātivartate ||

Translation

अशा रीतीने नीट साधलेल्या योगाने युक्त होऊन, तो योग अंतिम सिद्धीपर्यंत नेणारा पुरुष—तो अजून ब्रह्मजिज्ञासूच असला तरी—‘शब्दब्रह्मा’ला, म्हणजे वेदविहित विधि-निषेध व सकाम कर्मांची मर्यादा ओलांडून जातो.

Word by Word

एवम्thus, in this manner

होतेनby the invoker/priest (hotṛ)

योगेनby/with yoga; by the discipline

युज्जानःengaging (himself), practicing

होवम्the oblation/sacrifice (homa)

अन्ततःfinally, ultimately

अपिeven, also

जिज्ञासमानःdesiring to know; inquiring

अपिeven

शब्दब्रह्मthe Brahman as word (Veda); verbal Brahman

अतिवर्ततेgoes beyond, transcends

Speaker

व्यास उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vyāsa

Brahman

Śabda-brahma (Vedic word/revelation)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Steady yoga, carried to completion, enables a seeker to go beyond the Veda’s ritual-and-reward framework (śabda-brahma) and move toward higher Brahman-realization; inner discipline outranks desire-motivated religious action.

What is happening in the narrative?

In the didactic setting of Śānti Parva, Vyāsa is explaining the transformative power of yoga: even a person still in the stage of inquiry (jijñāsā) can, through accomplished practice, surpass the limits of Vedic ritualism and its fruit-oriented duties.