Shloka 5
ब्रह्मघोष-प्रवर्तनम्, अनध्याय-नियमः, वायु-मार्ग-वर्णनम्
Restoring Vedic Recitation, the Anadhyaya Rule, and the Taxonomy of Winds
अनेन कारणेनैतदव्यक्तं स्यादचेतनम् | नित्यत्वाच्चाक्षरत्वाच्च क्षरत्वान्न तवनन््यथा,इस कारणसे प्रकृतिको अचेतन माना गया है। क्षर अर्थात् विनाशी होनेके कारण वह जडके सिवा और कुछ हो ही नहीं सकती। इधर नित्य तथा अक्षर (अविनाशी) होनेके कारण पुरुष चेतन है
anena kāraṇenaitad avyaktam syād acetanam | nityatvāc cākṣaratvāc ca kṣaratvān na tavan anyathā ||
Karena itulah Yang Tak Termanifestasi (Prakṛti) dipahami sebagai tak berkesadaran. Sebab ia ‘kṣara’—dapat binasa—maka ia tak mungkin selain materi yang inert. Sebaliknya Puruṣa, karena kekal dan ‘akṣara’ (tak binasa), adalah sadar.
याज़्वल्क्य उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse distinguishes Prakṛti (the Unmanifest) as insentient because it is perishable and changeable (kṣara), while Puruṣa is conscious because it is eternal and imperishable (nitya, akṣara). This supports a metaphysical dualism used for discernment leading toward liberation.
In Śānti Parva’s philosophical instruction, the sage Yājñavalkya explains to his interlocutor the criteria by which one identifies Prakṛti as inert and Puruṣa as conscious, clarifying the foundational categories for spiritual discrimination and ethical steadiness.