Shloka 23
Brahmopadeśa: Adhipatitva-kathana, Dharma-lakṣaṇa, and Kṣetra–Kṣetrajña Viveka
Book 14, Chapter 43
धारिणी सर्वभूतानां पृथिवी गन्धलक्षणा । स्वरव्यज्जनसंस्कारा भारती शब्दलक्षणा,गन्ध सम्पूर्ण प्राणियोंको धारण करनेवाली पृथ्वीका लक्षण है तथा स्वर-व्यंजनकी शुद्धिसे युक्त वाणीका लक्षण शब्द है
vāyudeva uvāca | dhāriṇī sarvabhūtānāṃ pṛthivī gandhalakṣaṇā | svaravyañjanasaṃskārā bhāratī śabdalakṣaṇā |
Vāyudeva said: “The Earth, which upholds all living beings, is characterized by fragrance (smell). Speech (Bhāratī), refined through the proper formation of vowels and consonants, is characterized by sound.”
वायुदेव उवाच
Educational Q&A
Each domain is known by its defining attribute (lakṣaṇa): Earth is recognized by smell, and properly articulated speech is recognized by sound. The verse trains discernment—understanding realities by their inherent qualities rather than by confusion or mere appearance.
Vāyudeva is instructing (in a didactic passage) by stating characteristic marks of fundamental principles—here, the earth-element and speech—using a concise, definition-style formulation typical of philosophical instruction within the epic.