Shloka 16
Utkramaṇa-sthāna and Ariṣṭa-lakṣaṇa: Yājñavalkya’s Instruction on Departure Pathways and Mortality Signs
ऐसा पुरुष पूछनेपर तत्वज्ञानपूर्वक ग्रन्थके अर्थकों जैसा समझता है, वैसा दूसरोंको भी बता सकता है ।।
na yaḥ saṃsatsu kathayed granthārthaṃ sthūlabuddhimān | sa kathaṃ mandavijñāno granthaṃ vakṣyati nirṇayāt ||
婆悉吒说道：“唯有以真实知见（tattva-jñāna）通达经义者，受人诘问时，方能如实为他人宣说。若有人因见识粗浅、慧解迟钝，连在贤哲集会中都不能阐明论典之义，他又怎能凭那点微薄的理解，断然宣称此书的究竟旨趣（tātparya）呢？”
वसिष्ठ उवाच
Educational Q&A
Competent teaching requires true understanding: if someone cannot explain a text’s meaning among the learned, they cannot credibly claim to present its definitive purport. Authority in exposition rests on discernment and verified comprehension, not mere speech.
Vasiṣṭha is instructing his listener about the standards for interpreting and teaching śāstra. He contrasts genuine, knowledge-grounded exposition with shallow, uncertain talk, emphasizing that decisive interpretation (nirṇaya) belongs to the truly discerning.