Shloka 2
Śukasya Janma-yoga-phalaṁ — Vyāsasya Tapasā Putrārthaḥ (Śānti-parva 310)
यच्छिवं नित्यमभयं नित्यमक्षरमव्ययम् । शुचि नित्यमनायासं तद् भवान् वक्तुमहति,युधिष्ठिरने कहा--पितामह! जो धर्म और अधर्मके बन्धनसे मुक्त, सम्पूर्ण संशयोंसे रहित, जन्म और मृत्युसे रहित, पुण्य और पापसे मुक्त, नित्य, निर्भय, कल्याणमय, अक्षर, अव्यय (अविकारी), पवित्र एवं क्लेशरहित तत्त्व है, उसका आप हमें उपदेश कीजिये
yāc chivaṁ nityam abhayaṁ nityam akṣaram avyayam | śuci nityam anāyāsaṁ tad bhavān vaktum arhati || yudhiṣṭhira uvāca
Yudhiṣṭhira berkata: “Wahai datukanda, ajarkanlah kepada kami Hakikat yang membawa kesejahteraan dan sentiasa tanpa takut—kekal, tidak binasa, dan tidak berubah; suci, tetap sama sepanjang masa, serta tanpa beban derita. Ceritakan kepada kami prinsip tertinggi itu, yang melampaui pertentangan yang mengikat antara dharma dan adharma, melampaui keraguan, melampaui kelahiran dan kematian, dan melampaui pahala serta dosa.”
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames the inquiry for the highest, unconditioned principle—described as auspicious, eternal, fearless, imperishable, immutable, pure, and free from affliction. Ethically, it points beyond the ordinary calculus of merit and sin toward liberation (mokṣa) through knowledge of what does not change.
In the instruction-setting of Śānti Parva, Yudhiṣṭhira respectfully petitions the elder teacher (implicitly Bhīṣma, addressed as ‘Grandfather’) to explain the supreme reality that transcends doubt and the cycle of birth and death, initiating a discourse on liberation-oriented wisdom.