Shloka 40

Devanagari script

अनाकाशम् असंस्पर्शम् अगन्धम् अरसं च यत् अचक्षुःश्रोत्रम् अचलम् अवाक्पाणिम् अमानसम्

Transliteration

anākāśam asaṃsparśam agandham arasaṃ ca yat acakṣuḥśrotram acalam avākpāṇim amānasam

Translation

That Supreme Reality is not of the nature of space; it is beyond touch, without scent and without taste—without eyes and ears, unmoving; without speech and hands, and beyond the mind itself.

Word by Word

• anākāśam: without space/ether
• anākāśam: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: an-ākāśa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; नञ्-पूर्वक विशेषण (negating prefix)

• asaṃsparśam: without touch/contact
• asaṃsparśam: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: a-saṃsparśa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; नञ्-पूर्वक विशेषण

• agandham: without smell
• agandham: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: a-gandha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; नञ्-पूर्वक विशेषण

• arasam: without taste
• arasam: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: a-rasa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; नञ्-पूर्वक विशेषण

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयार्थक अव्यय (conjunction)

• yat: that which
• yat: Visheshya (Head/विशेष्य)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; सम्बन्धसूचक सर्वनाम (relative pronoun)

• acakṣuḥśrotram: without eyes and ears
• acakṣuḥśrotram: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: a-cakṣus + śrotra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; नञ्-पूर्वक द्वन्द्वसमास (eyes and ears)

• acalam: immovable
• acalam: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: a-cala (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; नञ्-पूर्वक विशेषण

• avākpāṇim: without speech and hands
• avākpāṇim: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: a-vāk + pāṇi (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; नञ्-पूर्वक द्वन्द्वसमास (speech and hands)

• amānasam: without mind
• amānasam: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: a-mānasa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा/द्वितीया (1/2), एकवचन; नञ्-पूर्वक विशेषण

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (teaching Maitreya)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: Nature of the Supreme and the object of Pracetas' contemplation

Teaching: Philosophical

Quality: authoritative

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: The Supreme Reality is beyond the sensory categories (space, touch, smell, taste) and beyond the organs and even mind.

Vedantic Theme: Brahman

Application: Practice neti-neti contemplation: notice sensory objects and mental constructs, then rest awareness in the witness beyond them.

Vishishtadvaita: Affirms Vishnu as suprasensory and transcendent, while later verses will reconcile this with His lordship and immanence.

Vaishnava Theology

Vishnu Form: Para-Brahman

Bhakti Type: Shanta

Characters & Entities

• Vishnu

FAQs

What is the significance of describing the Supreme as ‘without smell, taste, touch, and space’ in the Vishnu Purana?

It asserts Vishnu as the transcendent Para Brahman—beyond elemental qualities and sensory grasp—so the Supreme is not a material object within creation but the immutable ground of it.

How does Sage Parāśara explain the Supreme as beyond the mind and senses?

By negating sensory organs and functions (eyes, ears, speech, hands, mind), Parāśara indicates that the Supreme cannot be fully known through ordinary perception, but is realized as the highest reality underlying all experience.

What is the theological importance of Lord Vishnu in this context?

Vishnu is presented as the sovereign Absolute—unchanging and supra-material—whose transcendence supports Vaishnava theology that the Lord is both beyond the world and the ultimate source of cosmic order.