Shloka 16

Vāc–Manas Saṃvāda: Prāṇa-Apāna and the Primacy Debate (वाक्–मनस् संवादः)

Devanagari script

ब्राह्मण उवाच स्थावरं जड़म॑ चैव विद्धयुभे मनसी मम । स्थावरं मत्सकाशे वै जड़मं विषये तव,ब्राह्मण देवता कहते हैं--प्रिये! स्थावर और जंगम ये दोनों मेरे मन हैं। स्थावर अर्थात्‌ बाह्य इन्द्रियोंसे गृहीत होनेवाला जो यह जगत्‌ है, वह मेरे समीप है और जंगम अर्थात्‌ इन्द्रियातीत जो स्वर्ग आदि है, वह तुम्हारे अधिकारमें है

Transliteration

brāhmaṇa uvāca | sthāvaraṁ jaḍaṁ caiva viddhy ubhe manasī mama | sthāvaraṁ matsakāśe vai jaḍaṁ viṣaye tava ||

Translation

The Brahmin said: “Know that these two—‘the fixed’ and ‘the inert’—are both within my mind. The ‘fixed’ (the world grasped by the outer senses) is near to me; but the ‘inert’—that which lies beyond the senses, such as heaven and the like—falls within your domain.”

Word by Word

• {'brāhmaṇa uvāca': 'the Brahmin said', 'sthāvaram': 'fixed, stationary

• also the sense-grasped, manifest world (as explained in the passage)', 'jaḍam': 'inert, dull

• here taken as subtle/imperceptible to the senses (as glossed: svarga-ādi)', 'ca eva': 'and indeed', 'viddhi': 'know, understand', 'ubhe': 'both (of them)', 'manasī': 'two minds / two aspects within the mind (dual sense implied by ubhe)', 'mama': 'of me, mine', 'matsakāśe': 'near me, in my presence/keeping', 'vai': 'indeed, certainly', 'viṣaye': 'in the sphere/domain/competence', 'tava': 'of you, your'}

Speaker

ब्राह्मण उवाच

Characters & Entities

• ब्राह्मण (Brāhmaṇa)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse contrasts two orientations of the mind: attachment to what is directly grasped by the senses (the manifest, ‘sthāvara’) versus pursuit of what is beyond the senses (the subtle, ‘jaḍa’ as glossed here, e.g., heaven). Ethically, it points to how one’s ‘domain’ is defined by one’s chosen aims—worldly immediacies versus transcendent aspirations.

What is happening in the narrative?

A Brahmin speaker addresses a प्रिय (beloved/close interlocutor) and explains a distinction between two kinds of objects of concern: the visible, sense-apprehended world that stays ‘near’ him, and the imperceptible, otherworldly attainments (like svarga) that belong to the other person’s sphere of pursuit or authority.