Having examined the worlds gained by action, the seeker of Brahman must generate dispassion, for the unmade is not attained by the made. For the knowledge of That, he should approach a teacher with firewood in hand, versed in the Vedas and established in Brahman.

The central pivot: from action to knowledge, from ritual to realization.

Parīkṣya — having examined. The discrimination that evaluates the results of various paths.

Lokān karma-citān — worlds gained by action. The ritual heavens, temporary, conditioned.

Nirvedam — dispassion, disillusionment. Not bitterness but lucidity about the limits of action.

Akṛtaḥ kṛtena — the unmade by the made. The unmanifest is not attained through manifest action.

Samit-pāṇiḥ — with firewood in hand. The traditional symbol of requesting teaching: an offering of fuel for the fire of knowledge.

Śrotriyaṃ brahma-niṣṭham — versed in the Vedas and established in Brahman. Scriptural knowledge and living realization, both necessary.

The teacher is a bridge to the ineffable.