Shloka 85
Āścarya-kathana: Brāhmaṇa–Nāga Dialogue on Sūrya (Vivasvat) and the ‘Second Sun’ Phenomenon
एवं हि स महाभागो नारदो गुरवे मम । श्वेतानां यतिनां चाह एकान्तगतिमव्ययाम्,इस प्रकार महाभाग नारदजीने मेरे गुरु व्यासजीसे श्वेतवस्त्रधारी गृहस्थों और काषायवस्त्रधारी संन्यासियोंकी अविनश्वर एकान्त गतिका वर्णन किया है
evaṁ hi sa mahābhāgo nārado gurave mama | śvetānāṁ yatināṁ cāha ekāntagatim avyayām ||
एवं हि स महाभागो नारदो गुरवे मम। श्वेतानां यतिनां चाह एकान्तगतिमव्ययाम्॥
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse points to an imperishable 'ekānta-gati'—a final, exclusive spiritual course grounded in inner withdrawal and single-pointed pursuit of liberation—presented as applicable across outward modes of life, whether one is a white-clad practitioner/householder or an ascetic.
Vaiśampāyana reports that the sage Nārada instructed Vyāsa (the narrator’s teacher), explaining the enduring highest destination or path associated with different life-styles—those marked by white clothing and those of ascetic striving—within the broader Shānti Parva discourse on dharma and liberation.