Shloka 58
Adhyāya 287 — Janaka’s Inquiry on Śreyas, Abhayadāna, and Asaṅga
Non-attachment
पृच्छतस्ते मया तात श्रेय एतदुदाह्तम् । न हि शव्यं प्रधानेन श्रेय: संख्यातुमात्मन:,तात! मैंने तुम्हारे प्रश्नके अनुसार यह श्रेयोमार्गका वर्णन किया है। पूर्णतया तो आत्मकल्याणकी परिगणना हो ही नहीं सकती
pṛcchatas te mayā tāta śreya etad udāhṛtam | na hi śakyaṃ pradhānena śreyaḥ saṅkhyātum ātmanaḥ ||
पृच्छतस्ते मया तात श्रेय एतदुदाहृतम् । न हि शक्यं प्रधानेन श्रेयः संख्यातुमात्मनः ॥
नारद उवाच
Educational Q&A
Nārada teaches that he has explained the way of śreyas (the highest good), yet the full extent of true self-benefit cannot be exhaustively measured or reduced to a single definitive calculation; spiritual welfare transcends neat enumeration.
In Śānti Parva’s instructional setting, Nārada addresses a questioner affectionately (“tāta”) and concludes or summarizes his guidance by stating that he has described the śreyas-mārga, while also emphasizing its immeasurable, non-quantifiable nature.