Verse 1.138

Sanskrit text, Unicode transliteration and English translation of verse 1.138:

रूपादयो यथा दृष्टाः प्रत्यर्थं यतशक्तयः ।
शब्दास्तथैव दृश्यन्ते विषापहरणादिषु ॥ १३८ ॥

rūpādayo yathā dṛṣṭāḥ pratyarthaṃ yataśaktayaḥ |
śabdāstathaiva dṛśyante viṣāpaharaṇādiṣu || 138 ||

138. Just as colour and other qualities are seen to have powers in regard to particular effects, so are words seen to have such powers to remove poison etc.

Commentary

For those who have understood from the sacred books that divine happiness results from the knowledge and use of correct words, accompanied by a knowledge of the science of Grammar, this verse provides an argument strengthening the tradition recorded in the sacred books. It is seen in this world that colour, taste, smell and touch, whether singly or in combination, have powers to produce particular visible or invisible results.¹ Power to produce visible result is seen in poisonous plants, magnet and trees. Power to produce invisible result is seen in wine and in the waters of holy places. In the case of some words also, visible result such as the curing of snake poison is seen. Similarly, it is accepted that an invisible result is obtained by the repetition of mantras.

Notes

1. Vṛṣabha gives the following examples. Blue and bright are both colours, but one is soothing to the eyes and the other is irritating; sweet and bitter are both tastes, but one causes phlegm and the other bile.

These are visible results. Only a white goat can be sacrificed to Vāyu, otherwise the invisible result expected will not be produced. The touch of wine leads to a bad invisible result while that of the waters of holy places leads to a good one. That the mantras of the Atharvaveda have the effect of curing snake-poison is an example of visible effect from the word.