Mahabharata — Anushasana Parva, Shloka 23
Rudra-Śiva: Names, Two Natures, and the Logic of Epithets (रुद्रनाम-बहुरूपत्व-प्रकरणम्)
धर्म: किलक्षण: प्रोक्त: कथं वा चरितुं नरै: । शक््यो धर्ममविन्दद्धिर्धर्मज्ञ वद मे प्रभो
nārada uvāca | dharmaḥ ki-lakṣaṇaḥ proktaḥ kathaṃ vā carituṃ naraiḥ | śakyo dharmam avindadbhir dharmajña vada me prabho prabho dharmajña ||
那罗陀说道：“如所传授者，法（dharma）的标志为何？若人尚未寻得、尚未了悟此法，又如何能依之而行、依之而住？噢通达法者，请告诉我——噢可敬者——当如何行持。”
नारद उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames a foundational ethical problem: dharma must be defined by recognizable marks (lakṣaṇa), and guidance is needed on how ordinary people can practice it when they lack clear knowledge or direct realization of what dharma is.
Nārada, in the role of an inquirer, addresses a ‘knower of dharma’ and asks for a clear definition of dharma and practical instruction for those who have not yet discovered or understood it.