Shloka 26
Brāhmaṇa-māhātmya: Tārkṣya’s instruction on tapas, satya, and svadharma
Chapter 182
बुद्धिरुत्पद्यते कार्यान््मनस्तूत्पन्नमेव हि । बुद्धे्गुणविधानेन मनस्तद्गुणवद् भवेत्,सर्पने कहा--तात! आत्माके भोग और मोक्षका सम्पादन करना ही बुद्धिका प्रयोजन है तथा आत्माका आश्रय लेकर ही बुद्धि विषयोंकी ओर जाती है। इस कारण वह आत्माका अनुसरण करनेवाली मानी जाती है। वह भी आत्माकी चेतनशक्तिके सम्बन्धसे ही है तथा बुद्धिके गुणविधानसे अर्थात् उसकी ज्ञानशक्तिके प्रभावसे ही मन उस गुणसे सम्पन्न होता है यानी इन्द्रियोंके विषयोंको ग्रहण करनेमें समर्थ हो जाता है। अतः बुद्धि तो कार्यके आरम्भसे प्रकट होती है और मन सदैव प्रकट रहता है। (कार्यको देखकर ही कारणकी सत्ता व्यक्त होती है--यह न्याय है)
buddhir utpadyate kāryān manas tūtpannam eva hi | buddher guṇavidhānena manas tadguṇavad bhavet ||
The serpent said: “Intellect becomes manifest in relation to actions (and their arising), whereas the mind is already present. Through the intellect’s determination and imparting of qualities—through its power of knowing and discerning—the mind comes to share that same capacity, becoming fit to apprehend the objects of the senses. Thus, intellect is recognized by its emergence at the commencement of activity, while the mind is regarded as ever-present.”
सर्प उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse distinguishes mind (manas) and intellect (buddhi): mind is treated as continuously present, while intellect is recognized by its operative manifestation when action/decision begins. Further, the mind becomes capable of grasping sense-objects when it is ‘qualified’ by the intellect’s discerning power.
A serpent is instructing the listener in a philosophical register, explaining how the inner faculties function—how buddhi and manas relate, and how cognition and engagement with objects depend on the intellect’s determining force.