Shloka 40
Pānīya-dāna and Anna-dāna: The Primacy of Life-Sustaining Gifts (पानीयदान-प्रशंसा / अन्नदान-प्रशंसा)
सम्भवन्ति तत: शुक्रात् प्राणिन: पृथिवीपते । अग्नीषोमौ हि तच्छुक्रे सृजतः पुष्यतश्न ह,पृथ्वीनाथ! उस वीर्यसे प्राणी उत्पन्न होते हैं। इस प्रकार अग्नि और सोम उस वीर्यकी सृष्टि और पुष्टि करते हैं
nārada uvāca | sambhavanti tataḥ śukrāt prāṇinaḥ pṛthivīpate | agnīṣomau hi tacchukre sṛjataḥ puṣyataś ca ||
Narada said: “O lord of the earth, living beings come into existence from that semen. Indeed, Agni and Soma are present in that seed: they bring it forth and also nourish it, so that embodied life may arise.”
नारद उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse links human generation to cosmic principles: life arises from śukra (seed), and within it Agni and Soma symbolize the forces of production and nourishment. It frames procreation as a dharmic, cosmically supported process rather than a merely physical act.
Narada addresses a king (“lord of the earth”) and explains how living beings originate. He describes the seed as the immediate cause of birth and identifies Agni and Soma as the sustaining powers that generate and strengthen that seed so conception and growth can occur.