Shloka 22
Bhṛgu–Bharadvāja-saṃvāda: Vānaprastha-parivrājaka-ācāra, Abhaya-dharma, and Lokānāṃ Vibhāga (Śānti-parva 185)
श्रोत्रं प्राणं तथा55स्यं च हृदयं कोष्ठमेव च । आकाशात् प्राणिनामेते शरीरे पजच धातव:,कान, नासिका, मुख, हृदय और उदर प्राणियोंके शरीरमें ये पाँच धातुमप खोखलापन आकाशसे उत्पन्न हुए हैं--
śrotraṃ prāṇaṃ tathāsyaṃ ca hṛdayaṃ koṣṭham eva ca | ākāśāt prāṇinām ete śarīre pañca dhātavaḥ ||
Bharadvāja said: “The ear, the vital breath, the mouth, the heart, and the belly (the inner cavity)—these five ‘hollow’ constituents within the bodies of living beings arise from ākāśa (space).”
भरद्वाज उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches an elemental anatomy: certain hollow or cavity-like bodily constituents (ear, breath-channel, mouth, heart-region, belly) are said to arise from ākāśa (space). The broader implication is philosophical—understanding the body as composed of elements supports detachment and disciplined living, aligning ethical conduct with insight into nature’s order.
In Śānti Parva’s instructional setting, the sage Bharadvāja is explaining a doctrine of the body and elements. He enumerates specific bodily constituents and assigns their origin to ākāśa, as part of a larger exposition on how embodied life is structured and how such knowledge aids calmness, restraint, and dharmic understanding.