Shloka 25
Śuka–Janaka Saṃvāda: Āśrama-krama, Jñāna-vijñāna, and the Marks of Liberation (शुक-जनक संवादः)
मोहो<5प्रकाशस्तामिस्रमन्धतामिस्रसंज्ञितम् । मरणं चान्धतामिस्रं तामिस््र क्रोध उच्यते
yājñavalkya uvāca | moho 'prakāśas tāmisram andhatāmisra-saṃjñitam | maraṇaṃ cāndhatāmisraṃ tāmisraṃ krodha ucyate ||
耶若那伐迦说道：“迷妄乃名为‘无光’（无明）之境，称作昏暗（tāmisra）与极昏暗（andhatāmisra）。极昏暗被认作死亡；昏暗则被说为嗔怒。就伦理而言，此皆为惰暗之性（tamas）的征相：当心识为迷云所蔽，便坠入黑暗——嗔怒使人更深沉沦，而此等遮蔽之极处，便是如死亡般的败坏：慧辨与生命同归于毁。”
याज़्वल्क्य उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse classifies forms of inner darkness (tamas) and links them to ethical failure: ignorance/delusion is ‘non-illumination’; anger is a key expression of that darkness (tāmisra); and the most extreme obscuration is associated with death (andhatāmisra). The practical implication is that mastering anger and dispelling ignorance are essential for dharmic living.
In Śānti Parva’s instructional setting, Yājñavalkya is teaching about the guṇas (especially tamas) by defining technical terms—tāmisra and andhatāmisra—and mapping them to recognizable human conditions (anger and death), as part of a broader ethical-psychological exposition.