Shloka 20
परमार्थ-निर्णयः—श्रेयस्-भेदः, कर्म-ध्यान-सीमा, एकात्मदर्शनम्
राज्यादिप्राप्तिर् अत्रोक्ता परमार्थतया यदि परमार्था भवन्त्य् अत्र न भवन्ति च वै ततः
rājyādiprāptir atroktā paramārthatayā yadi paramārthā bhavanty atra na bhavanti ca vai tataḥ
येथे राज्य इत्यादी प्राप्तीचा उल्लेख केवळ ती परमपुरुषार्थाच्या सेवेस उपयुक्त ठरेल इतक्यापुरताच आहे; पण ती खरोखर परम प्रयोजनाची साधने न ठरली, तर ती परमपुरुषार्थ नाहीत।
Sage Parāśara (in instruction to Maitreya)
FAQs
This verse frames kingship as valuable only when it serves the highest end (paramārtha)—supporting dharma and devotion—rather than being treated as the ultimate goal.
Parāśara indicates that achievements like power and rule are discussed as means; if they do not genuinely lead toward the supreme good, they cannot be called paramārtha.
Implicitly, the “supreme purpose” culminates in alignment with the Supreme Reality—Vishnu—so worldly authority gains meaning only when oriented toward that highest truth.