The Threefold Discipline (Mental, Physical, Verbal) and the Salvific Power of Hearing Nārāyaṇa’s Name
व्याध उवाच । य एष भवता प्रोक्तो विष्णुर्नारायणः प्रभुः । स कथं प्राप्यते मर्त्यैरेष एव वरो मम ॥ ३७.४० ॥
vyādha uvāca | ya eṣa bhavatā prokto viṣṇur nārāyaṇaḥ prabhuḥ | sa kathaṃ prāpyate martyair eṣa eva varo mama || 37.40 ||
Myśliwy rzekł: „Ten Viṣṇu, Nārāyaṇa, suwerenny Pan, którego opisałeś: jak może być osiągnięty przez śmiertelników? To jedynie jest błogosławieństwo, o które proszę.”
Vyādha (the hunter)
It illustrates a common Purāṇic dialogic method: a lay figure (here, a hunter) poses a concise soteriological question—how the supreme deity is attained—prompting a didactic response that systematizes practice and ethics for broad audiences.
No geographic location is named in this verse; it is a doctrinal inquiry focused on the means of attainment (prāpti) rather than sacred geography.
The verse frames ethical-philosophical priority: the speaker seeks guidance on the attainable path for “mortals,” emphasizing practical accessibility and disciplined inquiry rather than status or birth-based entitlement.
Answers come straight from the texts, with the shlokas they draw on. Ask in your own words.
A free sign-in with Google or Apple keeps your chat saved across web and the app.