Shloka 83
Adhyātma–Adhibhūta–Adhidaivata Correspondences and the Triguṇa Lakṣaṇas (Śānti-parva 301)
प्रवृत्तिलक्षणं धर्म पश्यामि परमं नूप । मग्नस्य हि परे ज्ञाने कि नु दुःखतरं भवेत्
Yudhiṣṭhira uvāca: Pravṛtti-lakṣaṇaṁ dharmaṁ paśyāmi paramaṁ nūpa; magnasya hi pare jñāne kiṁ nu duḥkhataraṁ bhavet?
Yudhiṣṭhira nói: «Tâu đại vương, ta xem dharma mang dấu ấn của sự hành động, dấn thân (pravṛtti) là tối thượng. Với kẻ chìm trong tri kiến tối cao, còn nỗi đau nào hơn sự mất đi nhận biết phân biệt?»
युधिषछिर उवाच
Educational Q&A
Yudhiṣṭhira voices an ethical concern about liberation conceived as absorption in supreme knowledge: if such absorption entails loss of distinct cognition (and, by implication, meaningful awareness), then action-oriented dharma (pravṛtti)—with its responsibilities and intelligible moral life—appears preferable.
In the Śānti Parva’s discussions on dharma and mokṣa, Yudhiṣṭhira questions the value of a liberation-state described as being ‘immersed in supreme knowledge.’ He argues that if, in that state, differentiated knowing is absent, it seems like a profound deprivation, prompting him to praise pravṛtti-dharma as the higher path.