Shloka 27
नारद–शुक संवादः
Impermanence, Svabhāva, and Śuka’s Resolve for Yoga
चतुर्विशांस्ततो5पृच्छत् प्रश्नान् वेदस्य पार्थिव
caturviṁśāṁs tato 'pṛcchat praśnān vedasya pārthiva, pṛthvīnātha! tatpaścāt ānvīkṣikī-vidyā-sambandhe pañcaviṁśaṁ praśnam upasthāpayan; te caturviṁśati-praśnāḥ—1. viśvā kim? 2. aviśvaṁ kim? 3. aśvā kim? 4. aśvaḥ kaḥ? 5. mitraḥ kaḥ? 6. varuṇaḥ kaḥ?
耶若那伐迦说道：“大王，地之主宰啊！其后他提出了关于吠陀的二十四个问题；继而又提出第二十五问，关乎理性探究之学（ānvīkṣikī）。那二十四个吠陀之问开端如下：‘何为viśvā？何为aviśva？何为aśvā？何为aśva？谁是密多罗（Mitra）？谁是伐楼那（Varuṇa）？’”
याज़्ञवल्क्य उवाच
Educational Q&A
The passage frames dharma-oriented learning as disciplined inquiry: Vedic terms and deities are not merely named but examined through precise questions, and this is complemented by ānvīkṣikī—critical reflection that tests meanings and principles.
Yājñavalkya reports that a king (addressed as ‘lord of the earth’) proceeds to question him: first with twenty-four definitional questions about Vedic concepts, and then with a twenty-fifth question about the science of rational inquiry; the text begins listing the Vedic questions (viśvā/aviśva, aśvā/aśva, Mitra, Varuṇa, etc.).