Shloka 10
जनक–पराशर संवादः — वर्ण-गोत्र-धर्मविचारः
Janaka–Parāśara: Varṇa, Gotra, and Dharma Inquiry
शब्दश्रोत्रे तथा खानि त्रयमाकाशयोनिजम् । रस: स्नेहश्न जिह्ना च अपामेते गुणा: स्मृता:
śabdaśrotre tathā khāni trayam ākāśayonijam | rasaḥ snehaś ca jihvā ca apām ete guṇāḥ smṛtāḥ ||
Bhīṣma expone la constitución elemental del cuerpo y del mundo: «El sonido (śabda), el órgano del oído (śrotra) y las aberturas del cuerpo: estos tres se dicen nacidos de ākāśa (éter/espacio). Del mismo modo, el sabor (rasa), la humedad o fluidez (sneha) y la lengua (jihvā) se recuerdan como cualidades y funciones propias de ap (agua).»
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
That sensory qualities and organs correspond to specific elements: ākāśa is characterized by sound and gives rise to hearing and bodily apertures, while water is characterized by taste and moisture and is linked with the tongue. This frames embodiment as an ordered system useful for self-knowledge and detachment.
In Śānti Parva, Bhīṣma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on dharma and allied philosophical topics. Here he is presenting an elemental analysis (bhūta-guṇa/indriya mapping) as part of a broader teaching on understanding the body, perception, and the constituents of experience.