Shloka 41
धृतराष्ट उवाच आख्यानपज्चमैवेंदिर्भूयिष्ठं कथ्यते जन: । तथा चान्ये चतुर्वेदास्त्रिवेदाश्व॒ तथा परे,धृतराष्ट्रने कहा--मुने! इतिहास-पुराण जिनमें पाँचवाँ है, उन सम्पूर्ण वेदोंके द्वारा कुछ लोगोंका विशेषरूपसे नाम लिया जाता है (अर्थात् वे पंचवेदी कहलाते हैं), दूसरे लोग चतुर्वेदी और त्रिवेदी कहे जाते हैं
dhṛtarāṣṭra uvāca—ākhyāna-pañcamaiḥ eva indaiḥ bhūyiṣṭhaṃ kathyate janaḥ | tathā ca anye caturvedāḥ trivedāś ca tathā pare ||
Dhṛtarāṣṭra berkata: “Wahai resi, dalam kalangan manusia sering dilaungkan bahawa sebahagian mereka ialah ‘yang mengetahui lima’—iaitu mereka yang menghitung Itihāsa–Purāṇa sebagai yang kelima di samping Veda. Demikian juga, ada yang disebut mengetahui empat Veda, dan ada pula yang disebut mengetahui tiga Veda.”
धृतराष्ट उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights how scriptural learning was socially recognized in graded forms (three-, four-, and ‘five’-Veda learning), and it implicitly affirms the cultural authority of Itihāsa–Purāṇa as a major vehicle for transmitting dharma and sacred knowledge alongside the Vedas.
Dhṛtarāṣṭra questions the sage about a common designation among people: some are called ‘pañcavedī’ because Itihāsa–Purāṇa is treated as a fifth category of sacred learning, while others are known as ‘caturvedī’ or ‘trivedī’ depending on the extent of their Vedic mastery.