Shloka 7
जनक–पराशर संवादः — वर्ण-गोत्र-धर्मविचारः
Janaka–Parāśara: Varṇa, Gotra, and Dharma Inquiry
आकाशात् खलु यो घोष: संघातस्तु महीगुण: । वायो:प्राणो रसस्त्वद्भ्यो रूपं तेजस उच्यते,शरीरमें जो शब्द होता है, वह आकाशका गुण है। यह स्थूल शरीर पृथ्वीका गुण या कार्य है। प्राण वायुका, रस जलका तथा रूप तेजका गुण बताया जाता है
ākāśāt khalu yo ghoṣaḥ saṅghātas tu mahī-guṇaḥ | vāyoḥ prāṇo rasas tv adbhyō rūpaṃ tejas ucyate ||
毗湿摩阐明有身之生命由诸大所成：身中之声，实为空（ākāśa）之德；形体之坚聚，属地之德与所作；呼吸之命风，属风之德；味与津液，属水之德；而形色与可见性，则说属火之德。此教以身为诸元素之德的合成，劝人明辨而离著，不以必朽之躯为我。
भीष्म उवाच
Educational Q&A
The body and its functions are explained as a composite of elemental qualities: sound belongs to space, solidity to earth, breath to air, taste to water, and form/visibility to fire. Recognizing this supports discrimination between the Self and the body, fostering detachment and steadiness in dharma.
In Śānti Parva, Bhīṣma instructs Yudhiṣṭhira on dharma and liberating knowledge. Here he shifts to an analytical account of the body’s constitution through the elements, a contemplative teaching meant to calm grief and orient the listener toward inner understanding.