Mahabharata — Anushasana Parva, Shloka 40
स पञ्चाधा पञ्चजनोपपन्नं संचोदयन् विश्वमिदं सिसुक्षु: । ततश्चलकारावनिमारुतौ च खं ज्योतिरम्भश्ष॒ तथैव पार्थ
sa pañcadhā pañcajanopapannaṃ saṃcodayan viśvam idaṃ sisukṣuḥ | tataś calakārāvanimārutau ca khaṃ jyotir ambhaś ca tathaiva pārtha kuntīkumarāḥ |
Bhishma said: Wishing to bring forth this entire universe, the Supreme Impeller—endowed in fivefold ways and associated with the five classes of beings—set the world in motion and held all creatures under His governance. Thereafter He fashioned, in due order, the five great elements: earth, water, fire (light), wind, and space.
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches that the universe and its diverse orders of beings arise from a single governing principle that impels and sustains creation. The five great elements are produced in an ordered sequence, implying a cosmos structured by law and purpose—an ethical-metaphysical backdrop for dharma.
Bhishma, instructing the Pandavas (addressing Arjuna as Partha), explains a doctrine of creation: the Supreme creator, intending to manifest the world, brings forth the five elements and thereby supports the five classes of beings (gods, asuras, humans, ancestors, and animals).