Shloka 3
मृत्युकारणप्रश्नः / Inquiry into the Cause and Designation of Death
प्रध्वस्ता न निवर्तन्ते प्रवृत्तिनोपलभ्यते । एवमेके व्यवस्यन्ति निवृत्तिरिति चापरे
pradhvastā na nivartante pravṛttir nopalabhyate | evam eke vyavasyanti nivṛttir iti cāpare ||
毗耶娑说：“有人认为，即使凭真实之智‘毁灭’诸德（guṇa），它们也并非全然止息；只是对知者而言，它们不再被觉知——与之不复有任何起作用的联系。另有人则主张彻底止灭，即完全退隐，以至于它们根本不复存在。”
व्यास उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse contrasts two philosophical conclusions about liberation: (1) the guṇas may continue to exist in some sense, but for the realized person they are not apprehended and no longer bind; (2) alternatively, liberation is understood as complete nivṛtti—total cessation—where the guṇas are held to have no remaining existence.
In the didactic discourse of Śānti Parva, Vyāsa reports differing viewpoints among thinkers regarding the fate of the guṇas after the rise of tattva-jñāna (knowledge of reality), framing a doctrinal debate about whether liberation is non-apprehension/disconnection or absolute cessation.