Shloka 40
अहिंसा-प्रधान धर्मविचारः
Ahiṃsā as the Superior Dharma: Practical and Scriptural Reasoning
वायुर्भीमो भीमनादो महौजा: स सर्वेषां प्राणिनां प्राणभूत: । नानावृत्ति्देहिनां देहभेदे तस्माद् वायुर्देवदेवो विशिष्ट:
vāyur bhīmo bhīmanādo mahaujāḥ sa sarveṣāṃ prāṇināṃ prāṇabhūtaḥ | nānāvṛttir dehināṃ dehabhede tasmād vāyur devadevo viśiṣṭaḥ ||
Vāyu—yang dahsyat, bersuara seperti guruh, dan berdaya besar—itulah Bhīma; dan Vāyu itulah nafas hayat bagi semua makhluk. Apabila makhluk berjasad mengalami perpecahan tubuh, angin hayat yang sama itu menempuh pelbagai jalan dan mengambil pelbagai bentuk. Maka, di dalam tubuh ini, Vāyu—dewa atas segala dewa sebagai prāṇa—diisytiharkan sebagai yang paling unggul.
पितामह उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches that Vāyu, understood as prāṇa (the vital life-breath), is the sustaining principle of all beings and is supreme within the body; even at death, prāṇa is described as taking diverse courses, emphasizing its primacy over the perishable body.
Bhīṣma (Pitāmaha) is instructing on the hierarchy of inner powers and the nature of life within the body, identifying Vāyu/prāṇa as the foremost principle and linking Bhīma’s awe-inspiring power to his origin in Vāyu.