Shloka 4
नारद–शुक संवादः
Impermanence, Svabhāva, and Śuka’s Resolve for Yoga
निष्पाप नरेश! पहलेकी बात है, मैंने बड़ी भारी तपस्या करके तपनेवाले भगवान् सूर्यकी आराधना की थी। उससे प्रसन्न होकर भगवान् सूर्यने मुझसे कहा-- ।।
niṣpāpa nareśa! pūrvavṛttānto 'yam—mayā mahātapasā tapyamānena bhagavān sūrya ārādhitaḥ. tena prasannena bhagavatā sūryeṇa mama proktam—“varaṁ vṛṇīṣva viprarṣe yad iṣṭaṁ te sudurlabham; tat te dāsyāmi prītātmā, matprasādo hi durlabhaḥ.”
Sinabi ni Yājñavalkya: “O haring walang kasalanan, ito’y isang sinaunang salaysay. Noong una, matapos magsagawa ng matitinding pag-aayuno at pagninilay, sinamba ko ang banal na Araw—ang Panginoong iginagalang ng mga asceta. Nalugod sa akin ang diyos na Araw at nagsalita: ‘O brahmarṣi, pumili ka ng biyaya—anumang ninanais mo, kahit napakahirap makamtan. Sa pusong masaya ay ipagkakaloob ko iyon sa iyo, sapagkat bihira kong ipagkaloob ang aking pabor.’”
याज़्ञवल्क्य उवाच
Educational Q&A
Sincere tapas (disciplined austerity) and devoted worship can draw divine favor; yet such grace is portrayed as rare and therefore ethically weighty—one should choose boons responsibly, aligned with dharma.
Yājñavalkya recounts a past episode to the king: after intense austerities he worshipped the Sun-god, who, pleased, invites him to ask for any boon—even something very difficult—emphasizing the rarity of the Sun’s grace.