Shloka 15
महाभूत–इन्द्रिय–मनस्–बुद्धि–अन्तरात्मा विवेकः | Discrimination of Elements, Senses, Mind, Intellect, and Inner Self
चतुर्थश्नौपनिषदो धर्म: साधारण: स्मृत: । वानप्रस्थाद् गृहस्थाच्च ततो<न्य: सम्प्रवर्तते
vyāsa uvāca | caturthaś ca upaniṣado dharmaḥ sādhāraṇaḥ smṛtaḥ | vānaprasthād gṛhasthāc ca tato 'nyaḥ sampravartate ||
व्यास म्हणाले—“उपनिषदांनी सांगितलेला, चौथ्या आश्रमाशी निगडित धर्म ‘साधारण’ मानला आहे—म्हणजे तो सर्व आश्रमांनी जोपासावा. पण चौथ्या आश्रमाचा—संन्यासाचा—विशेष आचार गृहस्थ व वानप्रस्थ यांपेक्षा वेगळ्या रीतीने प्रवर्ततो।”
व्यास उवाच
Educational Q&A
Upaniṣadic inner disciplines—restraint, calm, endurance, and collectedness—are universal duties (sādhāraṇa-dharma) for all āśramas, even though the specific lifestyle and obligations of saṃnyāsa differ from those of the householder and forest-dweller.
In Śānti Parva’s instruction on dharma and life-stages, Vyāsa clarifies how renunciant teachings relate to the broader āśrama system: the inner ethical virtues are shared across stages, while the formal duties of the fourth stage (saṃnyāsa) are distinct.