Shloka 9

धर्मलक्षण-प्रश्नः (Marks and Sources of Dharma) | Chapter 251: Inquiry into the Definition of Dharma

Devanagari script

उत्तरेषु गुणा: सन्ति सर्वसत्त्वेषु चोत्तरा:

Transliteration

uttareṣu guṇāḥ santi sarvasattveṣu cottarāḥ

Translation

วยาสะกล่าวว่า—ในธาตุที่เกิดภายหลัง (ที่พัฒนากว่า) ย่อมมีคุณของธาตุก่อนหน้าอยู่; ฉันใด ในสรรพสัตว์ทั้งปวงก็ฉันนั้น คุณที่มาก่อนย่อมถูกรวมอยู่ในสิ่งที่มาภายหลังตามลำดับ.

Word by Word

• उत्तरेषु: in the later (ones)
• उत्तरेषु: Adhikarana
• Type: Adjective
• Root: उत्तर
• Form: Masculine/Neuter, Locative, Plural

• गुणाः: qualities
• गुणाः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: गुण
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• सन्ति: are / exist
• Type: Verb
• Root: अस्
• Form: Present, Third, Plural, Parasmaipada

• सर्वसत्त्वेषु: in all beings
• सर्वसत्त्वेषु: Adhikarana
• Type: Noun
• Root: सर्वसत्त्व
• Form: Neuter, Locative, Plural

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

• उत्तराः: the later (ones) / subsequent (ones)
• उत्तराः: Karta
• Type: Adjective
• Root: उत्तर
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

Speaker

व्यास उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Vyāsa
• ākāśa (space/ether)
• vāyu (wind/air)
• tejas/agni (fire)
• jala (water)
• pṛthivī (earth)
• śabda (sound)
• sparśa (touch)
• rūpa (form/color)
• rasa (taste)
• gandha (smell)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse teaches a principle of gradation: later or more complex entities retain the qualities of earlier ones while adding new qualities. Applied to the five great elements, each successive element includes the sensory properties of the previous and gains an additional one, culminating in earth possessing all five (sound, touch, form, taste, smell).

What is happening in the narrative?

In Śānti Parva’s instructional discourse, Vyāsa explains a philosophical framework for understanding the constitution of the world and embodied experience. He illustrates how the elements and beings are ordered by increasing attributes, supporting a reflective, dharma-oriented inquiry into nature and the self.