Shloka 4
Rājapurohita-lakṣaṇa and Purūravas–Vāyu Saṃvāda
Varṇa, Sovereignty, and Abhaya-dāna
मातरिश्वोवाच ब्राह्मणो मुखत: सृष्टो ब्रह्मणो राजसत्तम । बाहुभ्यां क्षत्रिय: सृष्ट ऊरुभ्यां वैश्य एव च
mātariśvovāca brāhmaṇo mukhataḥ sṛṣṭo brahmaṇo rājasattama | bāhubhyāṁ kṣatriyaḥ sṛṣṭa ūrubhyāṁ vaiśya eva ca ||
Mātariśvan sprach: „O Bester der Könige! Der Brāhmaṇa wurde aus Brahmās Mund erschaffen; aus seinen beiden Armen wurde der Kṣatriya erschaffen; und aus seinen beiden Schenkeln ebenso der Vaiśya.“ In dieser Lehre erscheinen die gesellschaftlichen Aufgaben als aus einer kosmischen Ordnung hervorgegangen; sie legt nahe, dass Dharma nach zugewiesener Funktion und Verantwortung zu verstehen ist, nicht nach Macht oder Geburtsstolz.
पुरूरवा उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames social duties (varṇa-dharma) as grounded in a cosmic creation narrative: different societal functions arise from different parts of Brahmā, suggesting an ordered distribution of responsibilities—teaching/ritual (Brāhmaṇa), protection/governance (Kṣatriya), and production/trade (Vaiśya).
Mātariśvan (identified with Vāyu) addresses a king (“best of kings”) and explains how the principal social classes were created by Brahmā, using the symbolic imagery of mouth, arms, and thighs to indicate their respective roles in sustaining society.