nāsāv ṛṣir yasya mataṁ na bhinnam
dharmasya tattvaṁ nihitaṁ guhāyāṁ
mahājano yena gataḥ sa panthāḥ
SYNONYMS
tarkaḥ—dry argument; apratiṣṭhaḥ—not fixed; śrutayaḥ—Vedas; vibhinnāḥ—possessing different departments; na—not; asau—that; ṛṣiḥ—great sage; yasya—whose; matam—opinion; na—not; bhinnam—separate; dharmasya—of religious principles; tattvam—truth; nihitam—placed; guhāyām—in the heart of a realized person; mahā-janaḥ—self-realized predecessors; yena—by which way; gataḥ—acted; saḥ—that; panthāḥ—the pure, unadulterated path.
TRANSLATION
" 'Dry arguments are inconclusive. A great personality whose opinion does not differ from others is not considered a great sage. Simply by studying the Vedas, which are variegated, one cannot come to the right path by which religious principles are understood. The solid truth of religious principles is hidden in the heart of an unadulterated self-realized person. Consequently, as the śāstras confirm, one should accept whatever progressive path the mahājanas advocate.'
PURPORT
This is a verse spoken by Yudhiṣṭhira Mahārāja in the Mahābhārata, Vana-parva (313.117).