Shloka 11
Ācāra-vidhi (Rules of Conduct) — Yudhiṣṭhira’s Inquiry and Bhīṣma’s Normative Catalogue
आय्यं हि पायुपर्यन्तमन्ते स्याद् गुदसंज्ञितम् । सत्रोतस्तस्मात् प्रजायन्ते सर्वस्रोतांसि देहिनाम्,मुखसे लेकर पायु (गुदा) तक जो महान् स्रोत (प्राणके प्रवाहित होनेका मार्ग) है, वही अन्तिम छोरमें गुदाके नामसे प्रसिद्ध है। उसी महान् स्रोतसे देहधारियोंके अन्य सभी छोटे- छोटे स्रोत (प्राणोंके संचरणके मार्ग अथवा नाडीसमुदाय) प्रकट होते हैं
āyyaṃ hi pāyuparyantam ante syād gudasaṃjñitam | srotas tasmāt prajāyante sarvasrotāṃsi dehinām ||
Bharadvāja sprach: Dieser große Kanal, der sich vom Mund bis zum After erstreckt, heißt an seinem Endpunkt Mastdarm. Aus diesem Hauptkanal gehen alle übrigen Kanäle der verkörperten Wesen hervor.
भरद्वाज उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse presents a didactic, quasi-physiological model: a principal bodily tract running from mouth to anus is treated as the foundational ‘channel,’ from which the body’s other channels are understood to branch. In Shanti Parva’s instructional context, such descriptions support reflection on embodiment and the structured nature of life within the body.
Bharadvāja is speaking in an explanatory mode, defining key bodily terms (pāyu, guda) and describing how the network of ‘srotas’ is conceived to originate from a main passage. The passage functions as a teaching segment within Shanti Parva’s broader discourse-oriented chapters.