Shloka 23

Rājapurohita-lakṣaṇa and Purūravas–Vāyu Saṃvāda

Varṇa, Sovereignty, and Abhaya-dāna

Devanagari script

शब्दे स्पर्शे रसे रूपे गन्धे च रमते मन:

Transliteration

śabde sparśe rase rūpe gandhe ca ramate manaḥ

Translation

ਐਲ ਨੇ ਕਿਹਾ: ਮਨ ਸ਼ਬਦ, ਸਪਰਸ਼, ਰਸ, ਰੂਪ ਅਤੇ ਗੰਧ ਵਿੱਚ ਰਮਦਾ ਹੈ—ਪੰਜੇ ਵਿਸ਼ਿਆਂ ਵਿੱਚ ਚੰਚਲ ਹੋ ਕੇ ਸੁਖ ਲੱਭਦਾ ਹੈ; ਅਤੇ ਇਹੀ ਲਗਾਵ ਉਸ ਨੂੰ ਠਹਿਰਾਵ, ਆਤਮ-ਸੰਯਮ ਅਤੇ ਧਰਮ ਲਈ ਲੋੜੀਂਦੀ ਨੈਤਿਕ ਸ਼ਿਸ਼ਟਤਾ ਤੋਂ ਦੂਰ ਖਿੱਚ ਲੈਂਦਾ ਹੈ।

Word by Word

• शब्दे: in sound
• शब्दे: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: शब्द
• Form: Masculine, Locative, Singular

• स्पर्शे: in touch
• स्पर्शे: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: स्पर्श
• Form: Masculine, Locative, Singular

• रसे: in taste
• रसे: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: रस
• Form: Masculine, Locative, Singular

• रूपे: in form (appearance)
• रूपे: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: रूप
• Form: Neuter, Locative, Singular

• गन्धे: in smell
• गन्धे: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: गन्ध
• Form: Masculine, Locative, Singular

• च: and
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च

• रमते: delights (takes pleasure)
• Type: Verb
• Root: रम्
• Form: Present, Lat, Third, Singular, Atmanepada

• मनः: the mind
• मनः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: मनस्
• Form: Neuter, Nominative, Singular

Speaker

ऐल उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Aila (speaker)
• mind (manas)
• five sense-objects (sound, touch, taste, form, smell)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse teaches that the mind naturally runs toward the pleasures of the five sense-objects. Recognizing this tendency is the first step toward restraint (dama), detachment (vairāgya), and steadiness required for living according to dharma.

What is happening in the narrative?

In Śānti Parva’s instructional setting, Aila speaks as a moral-exemplary voice, describing the mind’s attraction to sensory pleasures to support a broader discourse on self-mastery and the causes of bondage and suffering.