Shloka 4

Adhyāya 325: Nārada in Śvetadvīpa—Stotra to the Nirguṇa Mahātman

Devanagari script

पितुर्नियोगाज्जग्राह शुको धर्मभूतां वर: । योगशास्त्रं च निखिलं कापिलं चैव भारत,भारत! पिताकी आज्ञासे धर्मात्माओंमें श्रेष्ठ शुकने सम्पूर्ण योगशास्त्र तथा समस्त सांख्यका अध्ययन किया

Transliteration

piturniyogāj jagrāha śuko dharmabhūtāṁ varaḥ | yogaśāstraṁ ca nikhilaṁ kāpilaṁ caiva bhārata ||

Translation

பீஷ்மர் கூறினார்—ஓ பாரதா! தந்தையின் ஆணையின்படி, தர்மவான்களில் சிறந்த சுகர் முழு யோகசாஸ்திரத்தையும், கபிலரின் சாங்க்ய மரபையும் முழுமையாகக் கற்றார்.

Word by Word

पितुःof (his) father

नियोगात्from the command/appointment

जग्राहtook up / learned

शुकःŚuka

धर्मभूताम्consisting of dharma / righteous (teaching)

वरःexcellent, best

योगशास्त्रम्the treatise on yoga

चand

निखिलम्entire, complete

कापिलम्Kapila’s / Sāṅkhya-related

चand

एवindeed, just

भारतO Bhārata

Speaker

भीष्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

Bhishma

Shuka

Shuka's father (Vyasa implied)

Kapila

Bharata (Yudhishthira as addressee)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

True spiritual knowledge is pursued with discipline and rightful guidance: Shuka, exemplary in dharma, undertakes complete study of Yoga and Kapila’s Sāṅkhya, indicating that liberation-oriented wisdom rests on both ethical excellence and rigorous learning.

What is happening in the narrative?

Bhishma, instructing Yudhiṣṭhira in the Śānti Parva’s mokṣa-oriented discourse, cites Shuka’s education: obeying his father’s command, Shuka studies the full Yoga tradition and the Kapila Sāṅkhya system, presenting him as an ideal seeker and authority in spiritual disciplines.