अष्टक उवाच
चरन् गृहस्थः कथम् एति देवान् ।
कथं भिक्षुः कथम् आचार्यकर्मा ॥
वानप्रस्थः सत्पथे संनिविष्टो ।
बहून्य् अस्मिन् संप्रति वेदयन्ति ॥
ययातिर् उवाच
आहूताध्यायी गुरुकर्मस्वचोद्यः ।
पूर्वोत्थायी चरमं चोपशायी ॥
मृदुर् दान्तो धृतिमान् अप्रमत्तः ।
स्वाध्यायशीलः सिध्यति ब्रह्मचारी ॥
धर्मागतं प्राप्य धनं यजेत ।
दद्यात् सदैवातिथीन् भोजयेच् च ॥
अनाददानश् च परैर् अदत्तं ।
सैषा गृहस्थोपनिषत् पुराणी ॥
स्ववीर्यजीवी वृजिनान् निवृत्तो ।
दाता परेभ्यो न परोपतापी ॥
तादृङ् मुनिः सिद्धिम् उपैति मुख्यां ।
वसन्न् अरण्ये नियताहारचेष्टः ॥
अशिल्पजीवी नगृहश् च नित्यं ।
जितेन्द्रियः सर्वतो विप्रमुक्तः ॥
अनोकसारी लघुर् अल्पचारश् ।
चरन् देशान् एकचरः स भिक्षुः ॥
रात्र्या यया चाभिजिताश् च लोका ।
भवन्ति कामा विजिताः सुखाश् च ॥
ताम् एव रात्रिं प्रयतेत विद्वान् ।
अरण्यसंस्थो भवितुं यतात्मा ॥
दशैव पूर्वान् दश चापरांस् तु ।
ज्ञातीन् सहात्मानम् अथैकविंशम् ॥
अरण्यवासी सुकृते दधाति ।
विमुच्यारण्ये स्वशरीरधातून् ॥
aṣṭaka uvāca
caran gṛhasthaḥ katham eti devān |
kathaṃ bhikṣuḥ katham ācāryakarmā ||
vānaprasthaḥ satpathe saṃniviṣṭo |
bahūny asmin saṃprati vedayanti ||
yayātir uvāca
āhūtādhyāyī gurukarmasvacodyaḥ |
pūrvotthāyī caramaṃ copaśāyī ||
mṛdur dānto dhṛtimān apramattaḥ |
svādhyāyaśīlaḥ sidhyati brahmacārī ||
dharmāgataṃ prāpya dhanaṃ yajeta |
dadyāt sadaivātithīn bhojayec ca ||
anādadānaś ca parair adattaṃ |
saiṣā gṛhasthopaniṣat purāṇī ||
svavīryajīvī vṛjinān nivṛtto |
dātā parebhyo na paropatāpī ||
tādṛṅ muniḥ siddhim upaiti mukhyāṃ |
vasann araṇye niyatāhāraceṣṭaḥ ||
aśilpajīvī nagṛhaś ca nityaṃ |
jitendriyaḥ sarvato vipramuktaḥ ||
anokasārī laghur alpacāraś |
caran deśān ekacaraḥ sa bhikṣuḥ ||
rātryā yayā cābhijitāś ca lokā |
bhavanti kāmā vijitāḥ sukhāś ca ||
tām eva rātriṃ prayateta vidvān |
araṇyasaṃstho bhavituṃ yatātmā ||
daśaiva pūrvān daśa cāparāṃs tu |
jñātīn sahātmānam athaikaviṃśam ||
araṇyavāsī sukṛte dadhāti |
vimucyāraṇye svaśarīradhātūn ||
Ashtaka said: "How does a householder, living righteously, attain the gods? How does a mendicant [ascetic], how does one whose task is [service to] the teacher [— a disciple], [how does] a forest hermit — all established on the path of the good [attain them]? Much is said about this nowadays." Yayati said: "One who studies [the Veda] at the call [of the teacher], not needing to be urged in service to the teacher, rising first and lying down last, gentle, self-controlled, steadfast, vigilant, devoted to the study [of the Veda] — [such is] the student-brahmacharin, [and he] attains success. Having obtained wealth gained by dharma, let him sacrifice, always give [gifts], feed guests, and not take what is not given by others — such is the ancient, hidden [rule] of the householder. Living [by the fruit] of his own strength, turned away from sin, giving to others, not tormenting others, living in the forest, having mastered food and [bodily] movements — such a sage [— the forest hermit —] attains the chief success. Not living by craft, always homeless, having conquered the senses, detached from everything, having no shelter, light [in movement], of little activity, wandering through lands alone — such is the mendicant [sannyasin]. Let the wise one, self-controlled, [wishing] to become a forest [hermit], strive for that very night by which [worthy] worlds are conquered, desires are overcome, and happiness [is attained]. The forest-dweller, by [his own] merit, [saves] ten ancestors and ten descendants, and together with himself — as the twenty-first; [then], having in the forest cast off the elements of his body [— having died], [he is liberated]."
6dda76b2e377 · प्रकाशित 12 जुल॰ 2026, 4:06:49 pm UTC
उपलब्ध भाषाएँRUENश्लोक बदलें इन कुंजियों से
Here Yayati sets out the dharma of the four ashramas (stages of life) — the coherent teaching of Vedic culture. It is striking that each stage is shown its own path to perfection: the student (brahmacharin) — through service to the teacher and study; the householder (grihastha) — through righteous earning, sacrifice, hospitality, and not coveting what belongs to others; the forest hermit (vanaprastha) — through austerity and nonviolence; the mendicant (sannyasin) — through complete renunciation. Here is a supremely wise ordering of life: each person, in his own stage and by his own duty, can attain the highest; holiness is not the privilege of one stage but is open to all who fulfill their dharma. Also striking is the rule for the householder: "sacrifice, give, feed guests, do not take what is another's" — that is, the householder is sanctified by generosity and honesty, not by fleeing the world. This ideal is especially precious: one can be holy while living in the world, if one lives by dharma and serves others. And — profoundly — the merit of the righteous "saves ten ancestors and ten descendants": the holiness of one person benefits the whole lineage; thus a righteous life is not only personal salvation but a good for many.