Shloka 20
Adhyāya 302: Guṇa-vicāra, Gati-bheda, and the Imperishable State
Yājñavalkya–Janaka
वृतं नैकात्मकं येन कृतं त्रैलोक्यमात्मना । तथैव बहुरूपत्वाद् विश्वरूप इति स्मृत:
vṛtaṃ naikātmakaṃ yena kṛtaṃ trailokyam ātmanā | tathaiva bahurūpatvād viśvarūpa iti smṛtaḥ ||
Sinabi ni Vasiṣṭha: “Ang lumikha ng tatlong daigdig sa pamamagitan ng sarili Niyang Sarili ay hindi nakakulong sa iisang anyo. Sapagkat Siya’y nagpapakita sa maraming anyo, Siya’y inaalaala bilang ‘Viśvarūpa’—ang May Lahat ng Anyo. Kaya ang sansinukob ay kapwa nilikha at pinupuno ng iisang katotohanang iyon, na nagiging sari-sari nang hindi nawawala ang panloob na pagkakaisa.”
वसिष्ठ उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches that the ultimate principle that creates the three worlds is not limited to a single form; it manifests as many forms while remaining one. This supports an ethical vision of unity: seeing multiplicity as expressions of one reality reduces ego-driven division and encourages reverence toward all beings.
Vasiṣṭha is instructing his listener in a philosophical discourse within Śānti Parva, explaining the cosmic creator-pervader as ‘Viśvarūpa’—so called because the one reality appears in countless forms and yet underlies and pervades the entire three-world cosmos.