Shloka 1

तमोगुण-निरूपण

Analysis of Tamas and its Marks

Devanagari script

अपन कराता बछ। रस: षटत्रिशो<ध्याय: ब्रह्माजीके द्वारा तमोगुणका

Transliteration

brahmovāca | tad avyaktam anudriktaṁ sarvavyāpi dhruvaṁ sthiram | navadvāraṁ puraṁ vidyāt triguṇaṁ pañcadhātukam |

Translation

قال براهما: «إن تلك البركرتي غير المتجلّية (avyakta)—غير مضطربة، شاملة لكل شيء، غير فانية، وثابتة—ينبغي أن تُفهم على أنها الأساس. فإذا خرجت الغونات الثلاث من حالة التوازن تحوّلت إلى العناصر الخمسة، ومنها تنشأ ‘المدينة ذات الأبواب التسعة’ (الكائن المتجسّد).»

Word by Word

• ब्रह्मा: Brahmā
• ब्रह्मा: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: ब्रह्मन्
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• उवाच: said/spoke
• Type: Verb
• Root: वच्
• Form: Perfect, 3, Singular

• तत्: that
• तत्: Karta
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: तद्
• Form: Neuter, Nominative, Singular

• अव्यक्तम्: unmanifest
• अव्यक्तम्: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अव्यक्त
• Form: Neuter, Nominative, Singular

• अनुद्रिक्तम्: not agitated/undisturbed
• अनुद्रिक्तम्: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: अनुद्रिक्त
• Form: Neuter, Nominative, Singular

• सर्वव्यापि: all-pervading
• सर्वव्यापि: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: सर्वव्यापिन्
• Form: Neuter, Nominative, Singular

• ध्रुवम्: fixed/constant
• ध्रुवम्: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ध्रुव
• Form: Neuter, Nominative, Singular

• स्थिरम्: stable
• स्थिरम्: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: स्थिर
• Form: Neuter, Nominative, Singular

• नवद्वारम्: having nine gates
• नवद्वारम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: नवद्वार
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular

• पुरम्: city (body)
• पुरम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: पुर
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular

• विद्यात्: should know/understand
• Type: Verb
• Root: विद्
• Form: Optative, 3, Singular

• त्रिगुणम्: consisting of three guṇas
• त्रिगुणम्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: त्रिगुण
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular

• पञ्चधातुकम्: made of five elements/constituents
• पञ्चधातुकम्: Karma
• Type: Adjective
• Root: पञ्चधातुक
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular

Speaker

वायुदेव उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Brahmā
• Avyakta (Prakṛti)
• Triguṇa (sattva-rajas-tamas)
• Pañca-mahābhūta (five elements)
• Navadvāra-pura (the body as the nine-gated city)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Creation and embodiment are explained through Sāṅkhya categories: the unmanifest Prakṛti remains stable in guṇa-equilibrium, but when the guṇas become imbalanced, the five elements arise and the embodied ‘nine-gated city’ (the body) is formed.

What is happening in the narrative?

A doctrinal discourse is underway: Brahmā instructs sages about the metaphysical origin of the body and the cosmos, using the image of the body as a city with nine gates and grounding it in the dynamics of the three guṇas.