Shloka 7
Bhṛgu–Bharadvāja-saṃvāda: Vānaprastha-parivrājaka-ācāra, Abhaya-dharma, and Lokānāṃ Vibhāga (Śānti-parva 185)
अनूष्मणामचेष्टानां घनानां चैव तत्त्वतः । वृक्षाणां नोपलभ्यन्ते शरीरे पजच धातव:,वृक्षोंके शरीरमें गर्मी नहीं है, कोई चेष्टा भी नहीं है तथा वास्तवमें वे घन हैं; अत: उनके शरीरमें पाँचों भूतोंकी उपलब्धि नहीं होती है
anūṣmaṇām aceṣṭānāṁ ghanānāṁ caiva tattvataḥ | vṛkṣāṇāṁ nopalabhyante śarīre pañca dhātavaḥ ||
Bharadvāja said: “In trees there is no perceptible warmth, no evident activity, and in truth they are dense and inert. Therefore, within the body of a tree the five elemental constituents are not apprehended as they are in living beings.”
भरद्वाज उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse argues from observable signs—heat and activity—to question whether trees manifest the five elemental constituents in the same evident way as animals and humans. It frames a philosophical inquiry into what counts as “life” and how embodiment is recognized, using perception-based criteria (warmth, motion, density) to discuss the presence or absence of the pañca-mahābhūtas.
In the Shānti Parva’s reflective dialogues, Bharadvāja presents a reasoned claim about the nature of trees: since they appear cold, inactive, and solid, the five elements are not apprehended in their bodies. This functions as a step in a broader debate on ontology—how different beings are constituted and how one should understand life, soul, and matter.