Shloka 17
सप्तहोतृ-विधानम् एवं इन्द्रिय–मनःसंवादः
The Seven Hotṛs and the Debate of Senses and Mind
काष्ठानीवार्द्रशुष्काणि यतमानैरपीन्द्रियै: । गुणार्थान् नाधिगच्छन्ति मामृते सर्वजन्तव:,संसारके सभी जीव इन्द्रियोंके यत्न करते रहनेपर भी मेरे बिना उसी प्रकार विषयोंका अनुभव नहीं कर सकते, जिस प्रकार कि सूखे-गीले काष्ठ कोई अनुभव नहीं कर सकते
kāṣṭhānīva ārdraśuṣkāṇi yatamānair api indriyaiḥ | guṇārthān nādhigacchanti mām ṛte sarvajantavaḥ ||
Mind said: “Just as pieces of wood—whether wet or dry—do not themselves ‘experience’ anything, so too all living beings, even when their senses strive and exert themselves, cannot truly apprehend the objects of the senses and their qualities without me. It is the mind that makes sensory contact meaningful; without it, effort and organs remain inert.”
मन उवाच
Educational Q&A
Sense-organs alone do not produce experience; the mind is the indispensable mediator that apprehends sense-objects and their qualities. Without the mind’s participation, sensory effort is as inert as wet or dry wood.
The speaker ‘Mind’ is explaining its role within embodied life: even if the senses are active and striving, perception and enjoyment/knowledge of objects cannot occur without the mind, emphasizing inner causality over mere external faculties.