Shloka 13

Primordial Creation: From Brahman to the Cosmic Egg

Devanagari script

स्पर्शमात्रस्तु वै वायू रूपमात्रं समावृणोत् । ज्योतिश्चापि विकुर्वाणं रसमात्रं ससर्ज ह

Transliteration

sparśamātrastu vai vāyū rūpamātraṃ samāvṛṇot | jyotiścāpi vikurvāṇaṃ rasamātraṃ sasarja ha

Translation

فالهواء، إذ هو قائمٌ على «اللَّمس» وحده، أحاط بمبدأ «الصورة» وحده؛ وكذلك النار، وهي تتحوّل، أخرجت «الذوق» وحده كصفةٍ لطيفة.

Word by Word

• sparśa-mātraḥ: having only touch; mere touch
• sparśa-mātraḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sparśa (प्रातिपदिक) + mātra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; कर्मधारयः — ‘मात्रः स्पर्शः’ (having only touch / mere touch)

• tu: but; indeed
• tu: Sambandha (Discourse particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tu (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (निपात) — विरोध/विशेषार्थक (but/indeed)

• vai: certainly
• vai: Sambandha (Discourse particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: vai (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (निपात) — निश्चयार्थक (certainly)

• vāyuḥ: air
• vāyuḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vāyu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन

• rūpa-mātram: mere form
• rūpa-mātram: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: rūpa (प्रातिपदिक) + mātra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन

• sam-āvṛṇot: covered; enveloped
• sam-āvṛṇot: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: sam-√vṛ (वृ/वृञ् धातु; ‘आवृ’ = to cover)
• Form: लङ् (अनद्यतनभूत/Imperfect), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन, परस्मैपदम्

• jyotiḥ: light
• jyotiḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: jyotis (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (समुच्चयबोधक अव्यय) — conjunction

• api: also
• api: Sambandha (Discourse particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: api (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (निपात) — ‘also/even’

• vikurvāṇam: transforming (one)
• vikurvāṇam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vikurvāṇa (कृदन्त; √kṛ ‘कृ’ + vi उपसर्ग)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग/पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; वर्तमानकाले कर्तरि शतृ-प्रत्ययान्त कृदन्त — ‘transforming’ (here qualifying implied entity)

• rasa-mātram: mere taste
• rasa-mātram: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: rasa (प्रातिपदिक) + mātra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन

• sasarja: created
• sasarja: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √sṛj (सृज् धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन, परस्मैपदम्

• ha: indeed
• ha: Sambandha (Discourse particle/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ha (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (निपात/पादपूरण)

Speaker

Narratorial/cosmological exposition (speaker not explicit in this single verse excerpt)

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: adbhuta

Secondary Rasa: shanta

Geographic Context

Type: celestial_realm

Sandhi Resolution Notes

Sandhi Resolution Notes: sparśamātraḥ + tu → sparśamātrastu; jyotiḥ + ca → jyotiśca; ca + api → cāpi.

Characters & Entities

• Vāyu
• Jyotis (Tejas)

FAQs

What is the philosophical idea described in this verse?

It presents a Sāṃkhya-style creation sequence where subtle qualities (tanmātras) and elements interact: air (vāyu), identified with touch, is said to envelop form (rūpa), and fire/light (tejas/jyotis), while transforming, generates taste (rasa).

Why are “touch,” “form,” and “taste” emphasized instead of physical objects?

The verse focuses on tanmātras—subtle sensory potentials—showing creation as an emergence of qualities first, from which grosser elements and tangible objects later develop.

Does this verse teach an ethical or devotional lesson directly?

Not directly; it is primarily cosmological. Indirectly, it encourages a contemplative understanding of prakṛti’s evolution and the ordered structure of creation described in Purāṇic philosophy.