Shloka 13
Yoga, Nārāyaṇa as Supreme Principle, and the Emanation of Categories
Sāṅkhya-Yoga Outline
अहिरेव हाहे: पादान् पश्यतीति हि नः श्रुतम् तद्वन्मूर्तिषु मूर्तिस्थं ज्ञेयं ज्ञानेन पश्यति
ahir eva hāheḥ pādān paśyatīti hi naḥ śrutam | tadvan mūrtiṣu mūrtisthaṃ jñeyaṃ jñānena paśyati ||
Бхишма сказал: «Мы слышали, что лишь змея может распознать змеиные ноги. Так же и во всех воплощенных формах познаваемое Я, пребывающее в теле, созерцается только истинным знанием».
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The indwelling Self (ātman), though present in every body, is not grasped by the senses or external observation; it is realized only through jñāna—disciplined insight and discriminative knowledge.
In Śānti Parva’s instruction on dharma and liberation, Bhishma teaches Yudhiṣṭhira using an analogy: just as a serpent alone can recognize the serpent’s (hidden/imperceptible) feet, only knowledge enables one to recognize the subtle Self within embodied beings.