Shloka 49
अव्यक्त-गुण-पुरुषविवेकः | Avyakta, Guṇas, and Discrimination of Puruṣa
श्रोत्रादीनि तु सर्वाणि पञ्चकर्मेन्द्रियाण्यथ । वागादीनि प्रवर्तन्ते गुणेष्विह गुणी: सह
śrotrādīni tu sarvāṇi pañcakarmendriyāṇy atha | vāgādīni pravartante guṇeṣv iha guṇī saha ||
Vasiṣṭha dit : «Ici, dans ce monde, toutes les facultés des sens, à commencer par l’ouïe, et de même les cinq organes d’action, à commencer par la parole, n’opèrent qu’en rapport avec leurs qualités propres. L’être incarné, avec ces qualités, fonctionne au moyen de corps constitués des guṇa.»
वसिष्ठ उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches that the senses and organs of action do not act independently; they function only in connection with their corresponding guṇas/qualities. Ethical discipline and liberation-oriented insight begin by recognizing this guṇa-driven mechanism and reducing identification with it.
In Śānti Parva’s philosophical instruction, Vasiṣṭha explains the constitution and operation of embodied life: the sensory and active faculties arise and work within the field of guṇas, showing how the individual’s experience and conduct are conditioned by nature’s qualities.