Shloka 7

अध्यात्म-तत्त्व-निर्णयः

Adhyātma Taxonomy: Elements, Faculties, and Guṇas

Devanagari script

भूमेदेंहो जलात्‌ स्नेहो ज्योतिषश्नक्षुषी स्मृते । प्राणापानाश्रयो वायु: खेष्वाकाशं शरीरिणाम्‌

Transliteration

bhūmer deho jalāt sneho jyotiṣaś cakṣuṣī smṛte | prāṇāpānāśrayo vāyuḥ kheṣv ākāśaṃ śarīriṇām ||

Translation

Vyāsa berkata: “Tubuh makhluk berjasad terbentuk dari unsur tanah; kelembapan—minyak, keringat, dan cairan sejenis—muncul dari unsur air; mata dikatakan berasal dari unsur api; dan arus prāṇa serta apāna bersandar pada unsur angin. Pada lubang-lubang dan rongga tubuh, unsur ruang (ākāśa) bersemayam.”

Word by Word

• {'bhūmeḥ (भूमेः)': 'from earth

• of the earth-element', 'dehaḥ (देहः)': 'body

• embodied frame', 'jalāt (जलात्)': 'from water

• of the water-element', 'snehaḥ (स्नेहः)': 'oiliness, moisture

• bodily unctuousness (also ‘affection’ in other contexts)', 'jyotiṣaḥ (ज्योतिषः)': 'from fire/light

• of the fire-element', 'cakṣuṣī (चक्षुषी)': 'the two eyes', 'smṛte (स्मृते)': 'are said/remembered to be

• traditional assertion', 'prāṇa (प्राण)': 'in-breath

• vital force moving upward/forward', 'apāna (अपान)': 'downward-moving vital force

• excretory/descending current', 'āśrayaḥ (आश्रयः)': 'support, basis, dependence', 'vāyuḥ (वायुः)': 'air/wind

• the air-element', 'kha (ख)': 'space, cavity, aperture', 'ākāśam (आकाशम्)': 'ether/space-element', 'śarīriṇām (शरीरिणाम्)': 'of embodied beings'}

Speaker

व्यास उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vyasa
• earth (bhumi)
• water (jala)
• fire/light (jyotis)
• air (vayu)
• space/ether (akasha)
• prana
• apana
• eyes (cakshus)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The embodied person is a compound of the five great elements: earth forms the body’s solidity, water its moisture, fire the eyes (and luminous functions), air supports prāṇa and apāna, and space exists as cavities and openings. Recognizing this supports detachment from bodily identification and steadiness in dharmic discernment.

What is happening in the narrative?

In the didactic discourse of Śānti Parva, Vyāsa is explaining a philosophical account of the body’s elemental makeup, using it to orient the listener toward knowledge of the self and away from confusion rooted in the perishable body.