Shloka 11

तुलाधार-उपदेशः

Tulādhāra’s Instruction to Jājali on Ahiṃsā and Abhaya-dāna

Devanagari script

युधिछिर उवाच कथं पज्चगुणा बुद्धि: कथं पज्चेन्द्रिया गुणा: । एतन्मे सर्वमाचक्ष्व सूक्ष्मज्ञानं पितामह

Transliteration

yudhiṣṭhira uvāca

kathaṃ pañcaguṇā buddhiḥ kathaṃ pañcendriyā guṇāḥ |

etan me sarvam ācakṣva sūkṣmajñānaṃ pitāmaha ||

Translation

Yudhisthira dit : «Comment dit-on que l’intellect (buddhi) n’a que cinq qualités ? Et comment les cinq sens sont-ils eux aussi appelés des “qualités” (des éléments) ? Grand-père, explique-moi tout cela—ce savoir subtil—dans son entier.»

Word by Word

• {'yudhiṣṭhira uvāca': 'Yudhiṣṭhira said', 'katham': 'how? in what manner?', 'pañca-guṇā': 'having five qualities

• fivefold in attributes', 'buddhiḥ': 'intellect

• discriminative faculty', 'pañca-indriyāḥ': 'the five sense-faculties (hearing, touch, sight, taste, smell)', 'guṇāḥ': 'qualities/attributes

• also properties associated with elements', 'etat': 'this', 'me': 'to me

• my', 'sarvam': 'all

• entirely', 'ācakṣva': 'tell, explain (imperative)', 'sūkṣma-jñānam': 'subtle knowledge

• fine metaphysical understanding', 'pitāmaha': 'grandfather

Speaker

युधिछिर उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Yudhiṣṭhira
• Pitāmaha (Bhīṣma)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse frames a metaphysical inquiry: Yudhiṣṭhira asks Bhīṣma to clarify how the intellect is described as fivefold in qualities and how the five sense-faculties can be treated as ‘qualities’—a subtle doctrinal point typically explained through Sāṅkhya-style analysis of mind, senses, and elemental properties.

What is happening in the narrative?

In the Śānti Parva’s instruction setting, Yudhiṣṭhira, seeking clarity after the war, questions the elder Bhīṣma (Pitāmaha) and requests a complete explanation of a fine philosophical topic concerning buddhi, indriyas, and guṇas.