Shloka 4
Pañcahotṛ-Vidhāna and the Dispute of the Five Vāyus (पञ्चहोतृविधानम् — पञ्चवायूनां श्रेष्ठत्वविवादः)
ब्राह्मण उवाच प्राणेन सम्भूतो वायुरपानो जायते ततः । अपाने सम्भूतो वायुस्ततो व्यान: प्रवर्तते,ब्राह्मणने कहा--प्रिये! वायु प्राणके द्वारा पुष्ट होकर अपानरूप, अपानके द्वारा पुष्ट होकर व्यानरूप, व्यानसे पुष्ट होकर उदानरूप, उदानसे परिपुष्ट होकर समानरूप होता है। एक बार इन पाँचों वायुओंने सबके पूर्वज पितामह ब्रह्माजीसे प्रश्न किया--'भगवन्! हममें जो श्रेष्ठ हो उसका नाम बता दीजिये, वही हमलोगोंमें प्रधान होगा”
brāhmaṇa uvāca—prāṇena sambhūto vāyur apāno jāyate tataḥ | apāne sambhūto vāyus tato vyānaḥ pravartate |
Disse o brāhmaṇa: “De prāṇa, o sopro vital, nasce apāna; e de apāna surge vyāna e começa a atuar. Assim, cada alento se origina sustentado por outro.” Desse modo, os cinco ares vitais—desejando saber qual dentre eles era de fato o primeiro—aproximaram-se de Brahmā, o Avô primordial, e pediram-lhe que declarasse quem era o ‘śreṣṭha’ (o melhor), para que o nomeado fosse aceito como chefe entre eles.
ब्राह्मण उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse introduces the interdependence of the vital airs: each functions by support from another, and their question to Brahmā frames an inquiry into what truly deserves primacy—suggesting that ‘greatness’ is to be discerned by sustaining power and essential function rather than mere assertion.
A Brahmin narrator describes how the life-winds arise and operate in sequence (prāṇa giving rise to apāna, and apāna to vyāna). The five vāyus then approach Brahmā, the grandsire, asking him to name the श्रेष्ठ among them so that one may be acknowledged as the leader.