Shloka 18

सप्तहोतृ-विधानम् एवं इन्द्रिय–मनःसंवादः

The Seven Hotṛs and the Debate of Senses and Mind

Devanagari script

इच्धियाण्यूचु: एवमेतद्‌ भवेत्‌ सत्यं यथैतन्मन्यते भवान्‌ | ऋते<5स्मानस्मदर्थास्त्वं भोगान्‌ भुड्क्ते भवान्‌ यदि

Transliteration

indriyāṇy ūcuḥ—evam etad bhavet satyaṃ yathaitad manyate bhavān | ṛte ’smān asmad-arthās tvaṃ bhogān bhuṅkte bhavān yadi ||

Translation

Các giác quan nói: “Vâng—điều ấy hẳn sẽ đúng như ngài nghĩ, nếu ngài có thể hưởng thụ các đối tượng kinh nghiệm mà không cần đến chúng tôi, vốn sinh ra vì mục đích ấy. Nhưng nếu thiếu sự tham dự của chúng tôi, làm sao ngài có thể nếm trải khoái lạc?”

Word by Word

• इन्द्रियाणि: the senses
• इन्द्रियाणि: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: इन्द्रिय
• Form: Neuter, Nominative, Plural

• ऊचुः: said
• Type: Verb
• Root: वच्
• Form: Perfect, 3rd, Plural

• एवम्: thus
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: एवम्

• एतत्: this
• एतत्: Karta
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: एतद्
• Form: Neuter, Nominative, Singular

• भवेत्: might be / would be
• Type: Verb
• Root: भू
• Form: Optative, 3rd, Singular

• सत्यम्: true
• सत्यम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: सत्य
• Form: Neuter, Nominative, Singular

• यथा: as / in the way that
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यथा

• एतत्: this (thing)
• एतत्: Karma
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: एतद्
• Form: Neuter, Accusative, Singular

• मन्यते: thinks / considers
• Type: Verb
• Root: मन्
• Form: Present, 3rd, Singular

• भवान्: you (honorific)
• भवान्: Karta
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: भवत्
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• ऋते: without / except
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ऋते

• अस्मान्: us
• अस्मान्: Apadana
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: अस्मद्
• Form: —, Accusative, Plural

• अस्मदर्थात्: from our purpose / for our sake (i.e., without our involvement)
• अस्मदर्थात्: Apadana
• Type: Noun
• Root: अस्मदर्थ
• Form: Masculine, Ablative, Singular

• त्वम्: you
• त्वम्: Karta
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: युष्मद्
• Form: —, Nominative, Singular

• भोगान्: enjoyments / objects of enjoyment
• भोगान्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: भोग
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Plural

• भुङ्क्ते: enjoys / experiences
• Type: Verb
• Root: भुज्
• Form: Present, 3rd, Singular

• भवान्: you (honorific)
• भवान्: Karta
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: भवत्
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• यदि: if
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: यदि

Speaker

मन उवाच

Characters & Entities

• मन (Mind)
• इन्द्रियाँ (Senses)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

The verse highlights the interdependence of mind and senses in worldly experience: claims of independent enjoyment are challenged, implying that ethical self-mastery requires understanding how cognition (mind) and perception/action (senses) cooperate in producing desire and pleasure.

What is happening in the narrative?

In a dialogue where Mind speaks and the Senses respond, the senses rebut the mind’s assumption by arguing that enjoyment of objects is impossible without their operation; they insist that if the mind could truly experience objects unaided, then its claim would be valid.