Mahabharata — Shanti Parva, Shloka 3
श्रीशक्रसंवादः — The Dialogue of Śrī
Lakṣmī) and Śakra (Indra
युधिछिर उवाच यदिदं तप इत्याहुरुपवासं पृथग्जना: । एतत् तपो महाराज उताहो कि तपो भवेत्
Yudhiṣṭhira uvāca: yad idaṃ tapa ity āhur upavāsaṃ pṛthag-janāḥ | etat tapo mahārāja utāho kiṃ tapo bhavet ||
Yudhiṣṭhira perguntou: “Ó grande rei, as pessoas em geral falam de ‘austeridade’ como se fosse apenas jejum. O jejum em si é realmente austeridade, ou a austeridade é outra coisa? Se é outra coisa, qual é a sua verdadeira natureza?”
युधिछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames a dharmic inquiry: austerity (tapas) should not be reduced to a single external act like fasting. Yudhiṣṭhira asks for the deeper definition—implying that true tapas involves disciplined restraint, ethical conduct, and inner transformation rather than mere bodily deprivation.
In the instruction-filled Śānti Parva, Yudhiṣṭhira questions a senior authority addressed as ‘Mahārāja’ about the real nature of tapas. He notes that common people equate tapas with fasting and requests clarification on whether that is correct or whether a broader, truer form of austerity is intended.