Shloka 12
Śuka’s Manifestation from the Araṇi (Āraṇeya-janma) — शुकजन्म (आरणेय-सम्भव)
शब्द: स्पर्शक्षु रूपं च रसो गन्धस्तथैव च । एते विशेषा राजेन्द्र महाभूतेषु पडचसु
śabdaḥ sparśaś ca rūpaṃ ca raso gandhas tathaiva ca | ete viśeṣā rājendra mahābhūteṣu pañcasu ||
Yājñavalkya said: “Sound, touch, form, taste, and smell—these indeed are the distinguishing qualities, O king, that are found in the five great elements.”
याज़्ञवल्क्य उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches that the five sensory qualities—sound, touch, form, taste, and smell—are the defining properties associated with the five great elements. Understanding this helps one analyze experience and detach from mere sensory appearances through discernment.
In Śānti Parva’s instructional dialogue, the sage Yājñavalkya addresses a king and explains a foundational cosmological-perceptual framework: how the elements are characterized by specific sensory qualities, forming the basis of embodied experience.