Shloka 19
अध्वर्यु–यति संवादः
Adhvaryu–Yati Dialogue on Svabhāva, Ahiṃsā, and Mokṣa
अध्वर्युर्वाच भूमेर्गन्धगुणान् भुड्क्षे पिबस्पापोमयान् रसान् । ज्योतिषां पश्यसे रूप॑ स्पृशस्यनिलजान् गुणान्
adhvaryur uvāca: bhūmer gandha-guṇān bhuṅkṣe pibaś cāpomayān rasān | jyotiṣāṁ paśyase rūpaṁ spṛśasy anilajān guṇān ||
Adhvaryu berkata: “Wahai pertapa! Engkau menikmati sifat harum bumi; engkau meminum rasa yang berunsur air; engkau memandang rupa, sifat api dan cahaya; dan engkau menyentuh sifat sentuhan yang lahir daripada angin. Walaupun engkau mengakui bahawa hayat meresapi semua makhluk, engkau tetap menggunakan pancaindera terhadap objeknya—maka bagaimana engkau menyelaraskan dakwaanmu dengan pengalaman hidupmu sendiri?”
ब्राह्मण उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse highlights the linkage between the senses and the elemental qualities (smell–earth, taste–water, form–fire/light, touch–wind). It challenges a purely verbal claim about universal life/spirit by pointing to embodied experience: one still engages sense-objects, so one must explain how such engagement fits with one’s philosophical position and ethical restraint.
In a didactic exchange, the Adhvaryu priest addresses the interlocutor (in this section framed as a Brahmin speaker elsewhere) and argues by enumeration of sensory enjoyments. He uses the standard mapping of elements to qualities to press a question about consistency between doctrine and conduct.