Shloka 28
सप्तहोतृ-विधानम् एवं इन्द्रिय–मनःसंवादः
The Seven Hotṛs and the Debate of Senses and Mind
अगारमद्वारमिव प्रविश्य संकल्पभोगान् विषये निबद्धान् | प्राणक्षये शान्तिमुपैति नित्यं दारुक्षयेडग्निज्वलितो यथैव,विषय-वासनासे अनुविद्ध संकल्पजनित भोगोंका उपभोग करके प्राणशक्तिके क्षीण होनेपर मनुष्य बिना दरवाजेके घरमें घुसे हुए मनुष्यकी भाँति उसी तरह शान्त हो जाता है, जैसे समिधाओंके जल जानेपर प्रज्वलित अग्नि स्वयं ही बुझ जाती है
agāram advāram iva praviśya saṅkalpabhogān viṣaye nibaddhān | prāṇakṣaye śāntim upaiti nityaṃ dārukṣaye 'gnijvalito yathaiva ||
Mind said: “Having entered the sense-world like a man who has slipped into a house without a door, one goes on consuming enjoyments born of mental constructions and bound to their objects. But when the vital force is exhausted, he inevitably comes to quietude—just as a blazing fire dies out of itself when its fuel-sticks are consumed.”
मन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Sense-enjoyments driven by saṅkalpa (mental projections) keep one bound to objects, but such enjoyment is self-exhausting; when the life-force and craving-energy run out, the mind naturally becomes quiet—like fire that goes out when fuel is finished. The ethical thrust is toward recognizing the futility of compulsive indulgence and cultivating detachment before exhaustion forces it.
In a didactic passage, the speaker ‘Mind’ explains its own movement into the realm of sense-objects and uses two images—entering a doorless house and a fire consuming fuel—to describe how beings get caught in constructed enjoyments and how peace can arise when the sustaining fuel (vitality and desire) is depleted.