Shloka 25
Āścarya-kathana: Brāhmaṇa–Nāga Dialogue on Sūrya (Vivasvat) and the ‘Second Sun’ Phenomenon
यदा भूय: श्रवणजा सृष्टिरासीन्महात्मन: । ब्रह्मण: पुरुषव्यात्र तत्र कीर्तयत: शूणु
vaiśampāyana uvāca |
yadā bhūyaḥ śravaṇajā sṛṣṭir āsīn mahātmanaḥ |
brahmaṇaḥ puruṣavyāghra tatra kīrtayataḥ śṛṇu puruṣasiṃha ||
Wika ni Vaiśampāyana: “O tigre sa mga tao, O bayaning tulad ng leon, makinig. Nang muling sumibol ang paglikha na isinilang sa pagdinig—nang ang dakilang Brahmā ay lumitaw sa ikaapat na pagkakataon—isasalaysay ko sa iyo kung paanong nahayag noon ang banal na kaayusan (dharma); makinig ka.”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Dharma is presented as something that manifests within cosmic cycles and is preserved through listening and transmission; the narrator emphasizes attentive hearing as the gateway to understanding the origin and authority of dharma.
Vaiśampāyana signals a new explanatory section: he will describe how dharma arose at a particular cosmic moment—when Brahmā’s creation, described as ‘born of hearing,’ occurred again (specified here as the fourth time).