Shloka 16
Āścarya-kathana: Brāhmaṇa–Nāga Dialogue on Sūrya (Vivasvat) and the ‘Second Sun’ Phenomenon
यदासीच्चाक्षुषं जन्म द्वितीयं ब्रह्मणो नृूप । तदा पितामहेनैव सोमाद् धर्म: परिश्रुत:
yad āsīc cākṣuṣaṁ janma dvitīyaṁ brahmaṇo nṛpa | tadā pitāmahenaiva somād dharmaḥ pariśrutaḥ ||
毗湿摩波耶那说道：“大王啊，当造物主梵天进入其第二次诞生——名为‘恰克舒沙’（Cākṣuṣa）摩奴劫之时——那时，达摩被听闻并领受：由祖父神（Pitāmaha）亲自从苏摩（Soma）处传承而下。”
वैशम्पायन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Dharma is presented as an ancient, authoritative tradition transmitted through exalted cosmic figures; its legitimacy rests on lineage (paramparā) and on being ‘heard’ and preserved across epochs.
Vaiśampāyana situates the account in a specific cosmic period (the Cākṣuṣa Manvantara) and states that, in that time, Dharma was received and propagated—Brahmā (the Grandsire) conveying what came from Soma—thereby grounding the discourse on Dharma in primordial history.