Shloka 53

अध्याय १६ — शङ्कर-उमा-वरदानम् तथा तण्डि-स्तुतिः (Śaṅkara–Umā Boon-Granting and Taṇḍi’s Hymn)

Devanagari script

प्रधानं महदव्यक्तं विशेषान्तं सवैकृतम्‌ । ब्रह्मादिस्तम्बपर्यन्तं भूतादि सदसच्च यत्‌

Transliteration

pradhānaṃ mahad avyaktaṃ viśeṣāntaṃ savaikṛtam | brahmādistambaparyantaṃ bhūtādi sadasacca yat ||

Translation

प्रधानं महदव्यक्तं विशेषान्तं सवैकृतम् । ब्रह्मादिस्तम्बपर्यन्तं भूतादि सदसच्च यत् ॥

Word by Word

प्रधानम्Pradhāna (primordial matter)

महत्Mahat (cosmic intellect)

अव्यक्तम्the unmanifest

विशेषान्तम्ending in the particulars (viśeṣas)

सthat

वैकृतम्modified/derivative (from vikṛti)

ब्रह्मादिbeginning with Brahmā

स्तम्बपर्यन्तम्ending with a clump of grass (i.e., down to the lowest)

भूतादिbeginning with the elements/creatures

सत्being/existent

असत्non-being/non-existent

चand

यत्whatever/that which

Speaker

वायुदेव उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vāyu (Wind-god)

Brahmā

Pradhāna

Mahat

Avyakta

Bhūtas (elements/beings)

Stamba (grass/blade of grass)

Character Dynamics

Dharma Sankata (Moral Dilemma)

Verse Rasa (Emotional Essence)

Philosophical Teaching

Political Layer

Meter (Chandas)

Sandhi Notes

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse presents a Sāṅkhya-style totality: from the unmanifest root (pradhāna/avyakta) through cosmic intellect (mahat) and subsequent evolutes down to the smallest visible forms. It emphasizes that reality spans both manifest (sat) and unmanifest (asat) domains, encouraging a comprehensive, non-narrow view of existence.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vāyu is speaking in a didactic context, enumerating fundamental categories of existence. The statement functions as a philosophical catalog—mapping the hierarchy from the highest creator figure (Brahmā) to the humblest life-form (grass)—to frame the scope of what is being discussed or contemplated.