Shloka 38

Vānaprastha-vṛtti and the Transition toward the Fourth Āśrama (वानप्रस्थवृत्तिः चतुर्थाश्रमोपक्रमश्च)

Devanagari script

सर्वभूतसदृड्मैत्र: समलोष्टाश्मकाउ्चन: । तुल्यप्रियाप्रियो धीरस्तुल्यनिन्दात्मसंस्तुति:

Transliteration

sarvabhūta-sadṛḍh-maitraḥ sama-loṣṭāśma-kāñcanaḥ | tulya-priyāpriyo dhīras tulya-nindātma-saṁstutiḥ ||

Translation

毗耶娑说：所谓数论瑜伽行者（知者），其友爱坚固而平等地遍及一切众生；视土块、石块与黄金无差别；对可意与不可意皆同一；心志安定；于毁谤与赞叹中亦保持平等。如此之人，离贪欲、无内扰，唯以维持生命所获而知足，调伏诸根，便从世间系缚中解脱。

Word by Word

• सर्वभूतसदृक्: equal towards all beings
• सर्वभूतसदृक्: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सर्व-भूत-सदृश (प्रातिपदिक: सर्वभूतसदृश/सर्वभूतसदृक्)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• मैत्रः: friendly; benevolent
• मैत्रः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: मैत्र (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• समलोष्टाश्मकाञ्चनः: to whom clod, stone, and gold are the same
• समलोष्टाश्मकाञ्चनः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सम-लोष्ट-अश्म-काञ्चन (प्रातिपदिक: समलोष्टाश्मकाञ्चन)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• तुल्यप्रियाप्रियः: to whom the dear and the not-dear are equal
• तुल्यप्रियाप्रियः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: तुल्य-प्रिय-अप्रिय (प्रातिपदिक: तुल्यप्रियाप्रिय)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• धीरः: steadfast; wise; composed
• धीरः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: धीर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• तुल्यनिन्दात्मसंस्तुतिः: to whom self-blame and self-praise are equal
• तुल्यनिन्दात्मसंस्तुतिः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: तुल्य-निन्दा-आत्म-संस्तुति (प्रातिपदिक: तुल्यनिन्दात्मसंस्तुति)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

Speaker

व्यास उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vyāsa
• all beings (sarvabhūta)
• clod of earth (loṣṭa)
• stone (aśma)
• gold (kāñcana)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse defines the ethical and psychological marks of a liberated knower: universal friendliness, equal regard for valuables and non-valuables, and unwavering equanimity toward pleasure/pain and praise/blame—traits that express inner freedom from craving and lead to release from worldly bondage.

What is happening in the narrative?

Within Śānti Parva’s instruction on peace and liberation, Vyāsa is describing to the listener the character of a Sāṅkhya-yogin (jñānī). The focus is not on external events but on a didactic portrait of the ideal sage whose conduct embodies renunciation and steadiness.