Chapter 7 - Account of the Body

[Sanskrit text for this chapter is available]

Diti said:

1-2. O Lord, you have spoken all the truth; there is no doubt about it. Abandoning love for my husband, I entertained rivalry (with my co-wife), O brāhmaṇa. (Now) being tormented by pride, agony, humiliation and great grief, I shall, O best one, give up my life.

Kaíyapa said:

3-5. (Please) listen, I shall tell (i.e. explain) you in such a way that there will be (i.e. you will have) peace (of mind). O auspicious one, nobody is anybody’s son, or mother or father. Nobody has a brother or a relative. None has kinsmen and friends. In the mundane existence such is the relation, affected by illusion and infatuation. O respectable lady, one is one’s own mother, one’s own relatives and kinsmen. One is oneself the eternal moral virtue.

6-8. O you honourable lady, a man becomes happy due to (good) conduct. He surely perishes due to bad conduct and sin. Due to this he even goes to (i.e. is born in) a wicked species; there is no doubt about this. A man, deluded by an untruthful act and a great sin, always remains as an enemy of (other) beings. Here and there (i.e. everywhere) he has enemies; there is no doubt about this.

9. O you dear, auspicious and beautiful lady, when a man lives in a friendly way, he has friends everywhere.

10-11. O respectable lady, when the seed is concealed (underground) and is well-placed, the farmer gets the fruit exactly in accordance with it. Similarly your sons have vied with the good. Enjoy the fruit of that deed that has come to you.

12-13a. O illustrious one, your sons are destitute of penance and peace; due to that sin they have fallen from a great position. Realising this, be tranquil, and give up pain or pleasure.

13b-14a. To whom do the friends belong? To whom do relatives and friends belong? Beings live happily in accordance with their own deeds.

14b-15a. Due to their knowledge of the reality, the wise and the glorious do not think about another’s interest. (To do so) is futile; there is no doubt about this.

15b-21a. The body is constituted of the five elements, and is just infirm because of the joints. O respectable lady, with a hope for happiness, it has befriended everything. Ātman (i.e. the soul) is greatly meritorious, omnipresent, and sees everything; he is virtuous, and grants all (kinds of) prosperity. Thus occupying everything, and being untinged, he, O respectable lady, moves all alone. While (thus) moving, he saw, in a secluded place, four meritorious best brāhmaṇas, (as it were) great power embodied. The fifth one was Wind, the friend of the former (four). Then the soul sought the help of Knowledge. The illustrious one, seeing them, said to Jñāna (Knowledge): “O Jñāna, see these five; they are consulting one another. Go to them and talk to them. Ask them: ‘Who are you?’”

21b-22. Hearing those very significant words of that glorious one, Jñāna (Knowledge), propitiating him, said to him: “What have you to do with them? Tell me the truth (since) you are always pure.”

Ātman (soul) said:

23-24. These five are glorious, handsome and high-minded. I shall go, meet them, and shall speak to them. O Jñāna (Knowledge), listen: I shall speak to these worthy ones, who have come to the fifth one viz. Speed (i.e. Wind). O Knowledge, be (my) messenger; you are skilled in the act of a messenger.

Jñāna (Knowledge) said:

25-26. O soul, listen to my words, I am telling you the truth, and the truth (only). O dear one, O you of pure heart, you, desiring for the good, should never have the company of these five. O you very intelligent one, this Moha (i.e. Infatuation) is longing for your company.

Ātman (the soul) said:

27. Why do you, O Jñāna, avoid the company of these? O wise one, tell me the real reason of this.

Jñāna (Knowledge) said:

28. There will be great grief just due to their company. These five are the root of grief and cause affliction and tormentation.

Ātman said:

29. Let it be so; I shall do as you tell me.

That Ātman, (thus) speaking to Jñāna, associated himself with Dhyāna (Meditation).

Kaśyapa said:

30. Then all the five saw that Ātman. Having called Buddhi (Intellect) they said to her: “Be united with Ātman only.

31-32. O you auspicious one, act as the messenger between Ātman and us. O Buddhi, having gone to him say to: ‘The five elements,^[1] the magnanimous ones, the supporters ofthe world and the auspicious ones desire your friendship.’ You have to do this mission of ours. (Please) go from here.” (Buddhi said:)

33. “Let it be so; O glorious ones, I shall carry out this best mission of you.” Having thus spoken to them, she went to that Ātman, and said to him:

34-35. “O blessed one, I am Buddhi, I have approached you as a messenger from (i.e. of) the great (elements). Listen to their words (i.e. message). The five-natured (elements) desire your eternal friendship. Form friendship (with them), O you highly intelligent one, and abandon (i.e. keep) Dhyāna far away.”

Dhyāna (Meditation said):

36. O Ātman, you should not have their company. Merely by their contact there will be great grief (i.e. great grief will befall you).

37. How would you do your duty, when you are forsaken by Jñāna and me? So, you should not at all associate yourself with them.

38. O mighty one, they will make you live in the womb; there is no other go. Without Jñāna and me, you will certainly go to Ajñāna (i.e. Ignorance).

39. Thus speaking to that highly intelligent Ātman, Dhyāna ceased to speak. Then, Ātman, who was determined (to form friendship with the five elements), spoke to Buddhi, who had come to him:

40. “The illustrious Jñāna and Dhyāna are my virtuous ministers. It is not proper to go to them. So, O Buddhi, what shall I do (now)?”

41. Hearing thus (i.e. these words), the glorious Buddhi told in the vicinity of (i.e. to) them (i.e. the five elements) the full narration of Jñāna and Dhyāna (i.e. told everything that Jñāna and Dhyāna had said).

42-43. Then all the five (elements) went to Ātman (and said to him):) “We constantly desire your friendship only. O you lord of the worlds, since you are pure, we have approached you. Thinking for yourself only (i.e. independently of Jñāna and Dhyāna), please give us a reply.”

Ātman said:

44. All you five have come; (and) you seek my friendship. Tell before (i.e. to) me your merit and power.

Bhūmi (the Earth) said:

45. My firmness rooted in the bones is the basis of all operations, is connected with skin and flesh, and with nails and the hair on the body.

46. O you very wise one, my strength is in the body. That magnanimous odour passing through the nose is my servant.

Ākāśa (Ether) said:

47-48. I, Ether, have come. Listen; I shall tell you about the lustre, of the nature of the highest Brahman; space is without and within; I live in a vacant place. My ministers are the two ears; they are set up for hearing.

Vāyu (Wind) said:

49. I remain in five forms,^[2] and in this way I perform auspicious and inauspicious things. My minister, remaining on the habitation of the skin, resorts to the quality of touch.

Tejas (Fire) said:

50-54a. Always remaining in the body, I digest (articles of food). I manifest all matter and non-matter, without and within. I send forth semen, marrow, saliva, and also blood remaining in the skin and joints. I remain in the body. The two eyes are my ministers that cause the perception of matter. Thus before (i.e. to) you I have narrated my function. Everyday I well nourish the body with nectar. Such is my operation in the dear city of the body. Know^[3] the tongue to be my minister who very much enjoys the tastes.

Nāsikā (Nose) said:

54b-56. I give great nourishment to the body with fragrance. Casting off bad odour, I manifest (good) odour over the body. O you illustrious one, united with Buddhi, and displayed by her existence, I remain steady in this body for the mission of my master. Know odour to be my quality which proceeds in two ways.

The two Ears said:

57-58. Remaining in our body (i.e. the body to which we belong), we hear words telling about what ought or ought not to be done, and also auspicious and inauspicious words, true and false words, pleasant and unpleasant words uttered by people. My (i.e. our) quality is sound, and there is no doubt that I (i.e. we) employ my (i.e. our) operation when the intellect would intensify me (i.e. us).

The Skin said:

59-62a. The five-formed wind is well-settled without and within the body. I feel the movement of these (five forms). I feel cold, hot, sun, rain, and throbbing of the wind. I feel every touch, every contact (with) phlegm etc. of men. My quality is touch alone. I am telling the truth. Thus I have told you about my function.

The two Eyes said:

62b-64a. O best one, when the Intellect urges, and not otherwise, we observe all proper and improper forms that exist in the world. We remain in the body, and form is our quality. Thus is the propriety of our function in the body, O you highly intelligent one.

The Tongue spoke:

64b-66a. O dear one, united with Buddhi, I spread the kinds of taste. I find out every (taste) like saline, sour, insipid or sweet. Always associated with this function, I remain (in the body). This Intellect is the leader of all the sense-organs.

66b-67a. O dear one, listen, thus these five sense-organs have come together; and they again and again narrated their respective functions.

67b-68. Then Intellect approached the very intelligent one and said to him: “When the body is without me, it perishes; not otherwise. Therefore, O you highly intelligent one (i.e. Ātman), carry on, after having resorted to flesh (i.e. body).

69-70a. Then Karma (Fate) came there and said this (i.e. these words) to Ātman: “O you very wise one, I am Karma, and have approached you. I send you along the path by which you go here (i.e. in the world).”

70b-72a. Having heard all that, Ātman said to them: “You are united with the five-natured ones and are indeed common to all. Why do you seek the friendship of the five-natured one? You may (please) tell before (i.e. to) me the entire reason.”

The five-natured ones said:

72b-74a. Due to our contact the body is produced; O you of a high intelligence, you who follow a good vow, stay in that body. Due to your favour all of us (also) stay there. For this reason we always desire your friendship.

Ātman said:

74b-75a. O illustrious ones, let that, which is dear to you, be so. There is no doubt that I shall befriend you through affection.

75b-76a. The glorious and high-minded one, though warded off by the noble Jñāna and also by Dhyāna, sought their company.

76b-77a. Then the lord, being deluded by attachment and hatred, and associated with the five elements, became embodied.

77b-80a. When he (i.e. Ātman) goes to the womb (i.e. is conceived), he, fallen into the lubricious eddy, full of excrement and urine, along with them, with his body distressed, said to the five-natured ones. “O you five-natured ones, all of you listen to my words. Due to your contact, I, being deluded by great grief, have fallen into this lubricious, very terrible and fearful (eddy).”

The five-natured ones said:

80b-82a. O lord, remain there till the foetus is full (i.e. mature). Then, there is no doubt that, you will come out of it. You are our lord, settled in the region of the body. Thus you should rule; you will be enjoying pleasures.

82b-83. Hearing those words of (i.e. uttered by) them, Ātman, oppressed by grief, and desiring to go (away), became intent on running (away).

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

The five elements are: Earth, Water, Fire. Wind and Ether.

[2]:

The five forms of Vāyu are: Prāṇa, Apāna, Vyāna, Udāna, Samāna.

[3]:

Before this verse some such words as ‘Āpaḥ ūcuḥ’ are missing.