Shloka 8
अध्यात्म-तत्त्व-निर्णयः
Adhyātma Taxonomy: Elements, Faculties, and Guṇas
क्रान्ते विष्णुर्बले शक्र: कोष्ेडग्निर्भोक्तुमिच्छति । कर्णयो: प्रदिश:श्रोत्र॑ जिद्दवायां वाक् सरस्वती,चरणोंकी गतिमें विष्णु और बाहुबल [पाणि नामक इन्द्रिय] में इन्द्र स्थित हैं। उदरमें अग्निदेवता प्रतिष्ठित हैं, जो भोजन चाहते और पचाते हैं। कानोंमें श्रवणशक्ति और दिशाएँ हैं तथा जिह्लामें वाणी और सरस्वती देवीका निवास है
krānte viṣṇur bale śakraḥ koṣṭhe 'gnir bhoktum icchati | karṇayoḥ pradiśaḥ śrotraṁ jihvāyāṁ vāk sarasvatī ||
Vyāsa explains the sacred mapping of the divine within the human body: Viṣṇu abides in the power of movement, Indra in bodily strength, and Agni in the belly as the force that seeks food and digests it. In the ears dwell hearing and the directions, and on the tongue reside speech and Sarasvatī. Thus the body is taught to be a consecrated field of dharma; one should use one’s faculties with restraint, purity, and reverence, knowing them to be entrusted powers rather than personal possessions.
व्यास उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches that human faculties are not merely personal capacities but sacred endowments presided over by deities—movement by Viṣṇu, strength by Indra, digestion by Agni, hearing and spatial orientation by the directions, and speech by Sarasvatī. Recognizing this sanctifies bodily life and supports ethical restraint: one should move, act, eat, listen, and speak in ways consistent with dharma.
In Śānti Parva’s instructional setting, Vyāsa is describing an inner cosmology: the gods are said to be stationed in specific bodily functions and organs. This is part of a broader didactic explanation meant to guide conduct by portraying the body as a divine habitation.