Shloka 18

अव्यक्त-गुण-पुरुषविवेकः | Avyakta, Guṇas, and Discrimination of Puruṣa

Devanagari script

मासोपवासी मूलाशी फलाहारस्तथैव च । वायुभक्षो<म्बुपिण्याकदधिगोमय भोजन:,कभी लगातार एक मासतक उपवास करता है। कभी फल खाकर रहता है और कभी कन्द-मूलके भोजनसे निर्वाह करता है। कभी पानी-हवा पीकर रह जाता है। कभी तिलकी खली, कभी दही और कभी गोबर खाकर ही रहता है

Transliteration

māsopavāsī mūlāśī phalāhāras tathaiva ca | vāyubhakṣo 'mbupiṇyākadadhigomaya-bhojanaḥ ||

Translation

Vasiṣṭha sprach: „Er lebt in strenger Askese: mitunter fastet er ununterbrochen einen ganzen Monat; mitunter erhält er sich von Wurzeln und Knollen oder von Früchten allein. Bisweilen lebt er nur von Luft und Wasser; und zu anderen Zeiten nimmt er Sesamkuchen, Dickmilch oder gar Kuhdung als Nahrung.“

Word by Word

मासोपवासीone who fasts for a month

मूलाशीone who eats roots

फलाहारःfruit-diet (one who subsists on fruits)

तथाthus; likewise

एवindeed; just

चand

वायुभक्षःone who 'eats' air (lives on air)

अम्बुwater

पिण्याकoil-cake (sesame cake)

दधिcurd; yogurt

गोमयcow-dung

भोजनःone whose food is (i.e., eater; subsister)

Speaker

वसिष्ठ उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vasiṣṭha

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights the intensity and variety of ascetic disciplines (tapas) as a means of cultivating self-mastery and detachment—showing endurance, restraint in diet, and willingness to accept extreme simplicity for a higher ethical-spiritual aim.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vasiṣṭha is describing an ascetic’s regimen, listing different modes of subsistence—month-long fasting, living on roots or fruits, surviving on air and water, or taking very austere foods like sesame-cake, curd, or cow-dung—to illustrate the person’s rigorous practice.