Shloka 56

Sārasvata–Dadhīca Upākhyāna at Sarasvatī Tīrtha

Balarāma’s Pilgrimage Context

Devanagari script

विधिं च योगस्य परं कार्याकार्यस्य शास्त्रत: | संन्‍न्यासकृतबुद्धि त॑ ततो दृष्टवा महातपा:

Transliteration

vidhiṁ ca yogasya paraṁ kāryākāryasya śāstrataḥ | saṁnyāsakṛtabuddhiṁ taṁ tato dṛṣṭvā mahātapāḥ ||

Translation

శాస్త్రప్రామాణ్యంతో యోగపు పరమ విధానాన్ని, అలాగే కార్యం-అకార్యం నిర్ణయించే నియమాన్ని గ్రహించి, మహాతపస్వి అతనిని చూచెను—సన్న్యాసంలో దృఢబుద్ధి కలవాడై ఉన్నవాడిని.

Word by Word

• विधिम्: rule; injunction; method
• विधिम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: विधि
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• च: and
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च

• योगस्य: of yoga; of discipline
• Type: Noun
• Root: योग
• Form: Masculine, Genitive, Singular

• परम्: supreme; highest
• परम्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पर
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular

• कार्याकार्यस्य: of what should be done and what should not be done
• Type: Noun
• Root: कार्य-अकार्य
• Form: Neuter, Genitive, Singular

• शास्त्रतः: according to scripture; from the śāstra
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: शास्त्रतः

• संन्यासकृतबुद्धिम्: one whose mind is made (set) on renunciation
• संन्यासकृतबुद्धिम्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: संन्यास-कृत-बुद्धि
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• तम्: him
• तम्: Karma
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: तद्
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• ततः: then; thereafter; from there
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ततः

• दृष्ट्वा: having seen
• Type: Verb
• Root: दृश्
• Form: क्त्वा (absolutive/gerund), Parasmaipada (usage-neutral)

• महातपाः: the great ascetic (one of great austerity)
• महातपाः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: महातपस्
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

Speaker

वैशम्पायन उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vaiśampāyana

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Ethical clarity arises from disciplined practice (yoga) grounded in śāstra: one should discern kārya (duty) from akārya (improper action). Renunciation here chiefly means renouncing attachment and self-interest so the intellect becomes steady and fit for right action.

What is happening in the narrative?

The narrator describes a moment where a great ascetic, after grasping the scriptural rule of yoga and moral discernment, sees a person characterized by a mind made firm through renunciation—setting a reflective, instructive tone amid the events of the Śalya Parva.