Shloka 2
निर्णये वा महाबुद्धे सर्वधर्मविदां वर । प्रत्यक्षमागमो वेति कि तयो: कारणं भवेत्
Vaiśampāyana uvāca: nirṇaye vā mahābuddhe sarvadharmavidāṃ vara | pratyakṣam āgamo veti kiṃ tayoḥ kāraṇaṃ bhavet ||
निर्णये वा महाबुद्धे सर्वधर्मविदां वर । प्रत्यक्षमागमो वेति किमेतयोः कारणं भवेत् ॥
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames a foundational inquiry in dharma-discourse: when ethical or religious conclusions are disputed, what counts as the primary pramāṇa (means of valid knowledge)—direct perception (pratyakṣa) or authoritative tradition/scripture (āgama)?
Vaiśampāyana reports a question addressed to the Pitāmaha (Bhīṣma) in the Anuśāsana context: the interlocutor seeks guidance on how to adjudicate dharma—by what is directly seen/experienced or by what is transmitted as authoritative teaching.