Shloka 18
Vidyā–Avidyā and the Twenty-Fifth Principle
Sāṃkhya–Yoga Clarification
तात! आदित्य, वसु, रुद्र, अग्नि, अश्विनीकुमार, वायु, विश्वेदेव, साध्य, पितर, मरुदगण, यक्ष, राक्षस, गन्धर्व, सिद्ध तथा अन्य जो स्वर्गवासी देवता हैं, वे सब-के-सब तपस्यासे ही सिद्धिको प्राप्त हुए हैं ।।
tāta! āditya-vasu-rudrāgnyaśvinīkumāra-vāyu-viśvedeva-sādhya-pitṛ-marudgaṇa-yakṣa-rākṣasa-gandharva-siddhā tathā anye ye svargavāsino devatāḥ, te sarve tapasyaiva siddhiṃ prāptāḥ. ye cādau brāhmaṇāḥ sṛṣṭā brahmaṇā tapasā purā, te bhāvayantaḥ pṛthivīṃ vicaranti divaṃ tathā.
波罗舍罗说道：“亲爱的孩子！阿底提耶众、婆苏众、鲁陀罗众、火神阿耆尼、阿湿毗尼双子、风神伐由、毗湿维提婆众、萨陀耶众、祖灵（Pitṛ）众、摩鲁特诸军、夜叉、罗刹、乾闼婆、悉地者，以及一切居于天界的其他神祇——他们无一不是唯凭苦行（tapas）而得威力与圆满。又有那在太初由梵天以古老苦行所创造的婆罗门——那些原初的圣仙——凭其苦行之力行走四方，净化大地与穹苍。”
पराशर उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches that true power, status, and spiritual accomplishment—whether of gods or perfected beings—arise from tapas (disciplined austerity). Tapas is presented as a universal means of attainment and as a force that purifies and sustains the cosmos.
Parāśara addresses a listener as “dear child” and lists many celestial classes, asserting that all achieved their heavenly success through austerity. He then points to the primordial Brahmin-sages created by Brahmā, who roam and sanctify earth and heaven through the potency of their tapas.