Prashna Upanishad – II – Discussion of Devas – 2   «   »

Prashna Upanishad – II – Discussion of Devas – 2   «   »

तस्मै स होवाचाकाशो ह वा एष देवो वायुरग्निरापः
पृथिवी वाङ्मनश्चक्षुः श्रोत्रं च । ते प्रकाश्याभिवदन्ति
वयमेतद्बाणमवष्टभ्य विधारयामः ॥ २.२॥
tasmai sa hovācākāśo ha vā eṣa devo vāyuragnirāpaḥ
pṛthivī vāṅmanaścakṣuḥ śrotraṃ ca . te prakāśyābhivadanti
vayametadbāṇamavaṣṭabhya vidhārayāmaḥ .. 2.2..
Translation by Swami Sivananda
2 To the disciple he said: Space, akasa, verily is that god the wind, fire, water, earth, speech, mind, eye and ear, as well. These, having manifested their glory, said boastfully: “We support this body and uphold it.”

Translation by Max Mueller
2. He replied: The ether is that god, the wind, fire, water, earth, speech, mind, eye, and ear. These, when they have manifested (their power), contend and say: We (each of us) support this body and keep it.

Word Meaning
तस्मै (tasmai) – to him
सः (saḥ) – he
ह (ha) – indeed
उवाच (uvāca) – replied
आकाशः (ākāśaḥ) – the ether
ह (ha) – indeed
वै (vai) – verily
एषः (eṣaḥ) – these
देवः (devaḥ) – devas
वायुः (vāyuḥ) – air
अग्निः (agniḥ) – fire
आपः (āpaḥ) – water
पृथिवी (pṛthivī) – earth
वाक् (vāk) – speech
मनः (manaḥ) – mind
चक्षुः (cakṣuḥ) – eye
श्रोत्रं (śrotraṃ) – the ear
च (ca) – and
ते (te) – they
प्रकाश्य (prakāśya) – manifesting their glory
अभिवदन्ति (abhivadanti) – quarrelled among themselves and spoke with pride
वयम् (vayam) – we
एतत् (etat) – this
बाणम् (bāṇam) – body
अवष्टभ्य (avaṣṭabhya) – hold together
विधारयामः (vidhārayāmaḥ) – sustain totally
deity_Prashna

Sri Shankara’s Commentary (Bhashya) translated by S. Sitarama Sastri

Com.—To him, who thus questioned, he replied: ‘This Dêva is the âkâsa, wind, fire, water, earth, i e., these five great elements, Bhûtas, the constituent elements of the body and speech, mind, eye, ear and the rest, i.e., the senses of acting and the senses of intellect; these Devas of the nature of effects and instruments, manifesting their glory and competing for pre-eminence, say this body, this bundle of causes and effects, we hold together, as pillars do the vault, from going to pieces and chiefly support. The thought of each is that the body—the bundle—is supported by it alone.’

Prashna Upanishad – 2 – Prashna-2-2-tasmai sa – In Sanskrit with English Transliteration, Meaning and Commentary by Adi Shankaracharya (Sankara Bhashya) – Prashna-2-2