Mahabharata — Ashvamedhika Parva, Shloka 293
Adhyāya 42 — Mahābhūta–Indriya–Adhyātma-Vyavasthā
Brahmā’s Instruction on Elements and Faculties
अधिभूतं च संकल्पश्नन्द्रमाश्नाधिदेवतम् । पजञ्चभूतोंका संचालन करनेवाला मन अध्यात्म कहा गया है। संकल्प उसका अधिभूत है और चन्द्रमा उसके अधिष्ठाता देवता माने गये हैं
adhibhūtaṁ ca saṅkalpaś candramāś cādhidaivatam | pañcabhūtānāṁ sañcālana-karaṁ mana adhyātmaṁ kathyate | saṅkalpas tasyādhibhūtaṁ candramās tasyādhiṣṭhātā devatā manyate ||
वायु बोले—यहाँ मन, जो पंचमहाभूतों को प्रवृत्त और संचालित करता है, अध्यात्म कहा गया है। उसका अधिभूत संकल्प है और उसका अधिदैवत चन्द्रमा माने गए हैं।
वायुदेव उवाच
Educational Q&A
It maps the triad adhyātma–adhibhūta–adhidaivata onto the mind: mind is the inner principle (adhyātma), its operative worldly expression is intention/resolve (saṅkalpa) as adhibhūta, and its presiding divine regulator is the Moon (Candramā) as adhidaivata—highlighting that ethical action begins with disciplined intention.
In a didactic discourse within the Aśvamedhika Parva, Vāyudeva explains philosophical correspondences between inner faculties, their functional manifestations, and their presiding deities, using the mind and the Moon as a key example.