Mahabharata — Ashvamedhika Parva, Shloka 45
Mind as Charioteer; Kṣetrajña, Tapas, and Dhyāna-Yoga
Adhyātma-Upadeśa
शब्द: स्पर्शस्तथा रूपं त्रिगुणं ज्योतिरुच्यते
śabdaḥ sparśas tathā rūpaṃ triguṇaṃ jyotir ucyate
ਵਾਯੂ-ਦੇਵ ਨੇ ਕਿਹਾ—ਸ਼ਬਦ, ਸਪਰਸ਼ ਅਤੇ ਰੂਪ—ਇਹ ਤਿੰਨ ਗੁਣ ‘ਜ੍ਯੋਤਿ’ ਕਹੇ ਜਾਂਦੇ ਹਨ।
वायुदेव उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames ‘light’ (jyotis) as something understood through a threefold set of perceptible qualities—sound, touch, and form—pointing to a philosophical analysis of manifestation via sensory qualities (tanmātra-like categories) rather than treating light as only a physical object.
Vāyu-deva is speaking in an instructive mode, offering a concise doctrinal definition. The passage functions as a teaching moment within the Ashvamedhika Parva’s broader discursive sections, where divine or authoritative voices explain subtle principles.