Narada Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 38
Janaka’s Quest for Liberation; Pañcaśikha’s Sāṅkhya on Renunciation, Elements, Guṇas, and the Deathless State
वृथा ज्ञानं यदन्यञ्च येनैतन्नोपलभ्यते । ऋमसंवत्सरौ तिष्यः शीतोष्णोऽथ प्रियाप्रिये ॥ ३८ ॥
vṛthā jñānaṃ yadanyañca yenaitannopalabhyate | ṛmasaṃvatsarau tiṣyaḥ śītoṣṇo'tha priyāpriye || 38 ||
‘இது’ எனும் பரமத் தத்துவத்தை உணரச் செய்யாத பிற கல்வி-ஞானம் அனைத்தும் வீண்; அப்போது பருவங்கள்-ஆண்டு, திஷ்யம், குளிர்-வெப்பம், இனியது-இனியதல்லது என்ற இருமைகளில் மனிதன் சிக்கிக் கொள்கிறான்.
Sanatkumara (teaching Narada)
Vrata: none
Primary Rasa: shanta
Secondary Rasa: vairagya
FAQs
It declares that learning has value only when it culminates in direct realization of the highest truth; otherwise, one remains bound to cyclical time and the experience of dualities like pleasure/pain and heat/cold.
By implying that information alone is insufficient, it supports the bhakti principle that true knowing is transformative—leading to lived realization of the Lord/Truth, not merely conceptual mastery—so devotion must mature into inner experience beyond likes and dislikes.
It alludes to Jyotiṣa (Vedic astrology) through the mention of Tiṣya (Puṣya) and to Kāla-vicāra (time reckoning) via seasons and the year, while stressing that such technical knowledge is secondary unless it aids liberation.