Shloka 9

Adhyāya 48: Brahmopadeśa on Prāṇāyāma, Sāttvika Vṛtti, and the Sattva–Kṣetrajña Question

Devanagari script

आहुरेके च विद्वांसो ये ज्ञानपरिनिष्ठिता: । क्षेत्रज्ञसत्त्वयोरैक्यमित्येतन्नोपपद्यते,ज्ञानमें भलीभाँति स्थित कितने ही विद्वान्‌ कहते हैं कि क्षेत्रज्ष और सत्त्वकी एकता युक्तिसंगत नहीं है

Transliteration

āhur eke ca vidvāṁso ye jñāna-pariniṣṭhitāḥ | kṣetrajña-sattvayor aikyam ity etan nopapadyate ||

Translation

వాయువు పలికెను— జ్ఞానంలో స్థిరంగా నిలిచిన కొందరు పండితులు, క్షేత్రజ్ఞుడు మరియు సత్త్వం ఏకమని చెప్పడం యుక్తి కాదు అని అంటారు.

Word by Word

आहुःthey say

एकेsome

चand

विद्वांसःlearned men

येwho

ज्ञान-परिनिष्ठिताःfirmly established in knowledge

क्षेत्रज्ञ-सत्त्वयोःof the knower of the field and of sattva

ऐक्यम्identity, oneness

इतिthus

एतत्this

नnot

उपपद्यतेis tenable / is logically possible

Speaker

वायुदेव उवाच

Characters & Entities

Vāyudeva

kṣetrajña

sattva

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 asserts a key metaphysical distinction: the kṣetrajña (conscious witness/self) should not be equated with sattva (a guṇa of material nature). Even refined purity and clarity belong to prakṛti, whereas the knower is of a different order—awareness itself—so their absolute identity is argued to be untenable.

What is happening in the narrative?

Vāyudeva is presenting a doctrinal position held by certain realized scholars: they reject the claim that the self (kṣetrajña) and the quality of sattva are one. This functions as a philosophical clarification within the Ashvamedhika Parva’s discourse setting.