Shloka 15

Devanagari script

न श्षोत्रं बुध्यते शब्द मया हीन॑ कथंचन । प्रवरं सर्वभूतानामहमस्मि सनातनम्‌,एक बार मनने इन्द्रियोंसे कहा--मेरी सहायताके बिना नासिका सूँघ नहीं सकती, जीभ रसका स्वाद नहीं ले सकती, आँख रूप नहीं देख सकती, त्वचा स्पर्शका अनुभव नहीं कर सकती और कानोंको शब्द नहीं सुनायी दे सकता। इसलिये मैं सब भूतोंमें श्रेष्ठ और सनातन हूँ

Transliteration

na śrotraṃ budhyate śabdaṃ mayā hīnaṃ kathaṃcana | pravaraṃ sarvabhūtānām aham asmi sanātanam ||

Translation

Mind said: “Without me, the ear can in no way apprehend sound. Therefore I am the foremost among all beings, eternal.”

Word by Word

• [{'term': 'śrotram', 'definition': 'the ear

• the organ of hearing'}, {'term': 'budhyate', 'definition': 'understands, apprehends, becomes aware (of)'}, {'term': 'śabdam', 'definition': 'sound

• word'}, {'term': 'mayā hīnam', 'definition': 'deprived of me

• without my presence (i.e., without mind/attention)'}, {'term': 'kathaṃcana', 'definition': 'in any way

• at all'}, {'term': 'pravaram', 'definition': 'the best, foremost, excellent'}, {'term': 'sarvabhūtānām', 'definition': 'of all beings/creatures'}, {'term': 'aham asmi', 'definition': 'I am'}, {'term': 'sanātanam', 'definition': 'eternal

Speaker

मन उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Manas (Mind)
• Śrotra (ear)
• Śabda (sound)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Sense-organs do not yield meaningful perception on their own; without the mind’s attention and cognition, even hearing cannot truly register sound. Hence ethical living requires mastery of the mind, since it governs perception, choice, and restraint.

What is happening in the narrative?

In a didactic dialogue, the Mind addresses the faculties (senses), asserting its superiority by stating that the ear cannot apprehend sound without the mind. This is part of a broader instruction on how inner faculties coordinate and how self-control is grounded in mental governance.