Bhagavad Gita 15.14अहं वैश्वानरो भूत्वा प्राणिनां देहमाश्रितः।प्राणापानसमायुक्तः पचाम्यन्नं चतुर्विधम् ॥
ahaṁ vaiśhvānaro bhūtvā prāṇināṁ deham āśhritaḥ
prāṇāpāna-samāyuktaḥ pachāmy annaṁ chatur-vidham
Sanskrit recitation
The supreme person · 15.12–15.20 · Teaching
Translation
Having become the fire Vaisvanara, I abide in the bodies of living beings and, associated with the Prana and the Apana, digest the fourfold food.
Hindi translation
प्राणियोंके शरीरमें रहनेवाला मैं प्राण-अपानसे युक्त वैश्वानर होकर चार प्रकारके अन्नको पचाता हूँ।
Meaning
The immanence of the Lord as the gastric fire in all living beings is described in this verse.Vaisvanara The fire that abides in the stomach. This fire is fanned by the bellows of the incoming and the outgoing breaths continuously and large antities of food are digested. Inside the wonderful laboratory of the stomach I digest the food by taking the form of this gastric fire.Four kinds of food (1) Food which has to be eaten by mastication (Bhakshyam). (2) That which has to be sucked in (Bhojyam). (3) That which has to be licked (Lehyam). (4) That which has to be devoured or swallowed (Choshyam). Another classification is as follows (1) Rice is PrithiviAnnam (solid food) for human beings. (2) Water is Apyannam (watery food) for birds like the Chataka. (3) Fire is Tejasannam (hot food) for certain creatures. (4) Air is Vayvannam (air as food) for serpents.अयमग्निर्वैश्वानरो योऽयमन्तः पुरुषः येनेदमन्नं पच्यते।।
After Swami Sivananda
The supreme person· 15.12–15.20→
Teachers usually read this idea across several verses together, one shared reflection covers the whole unit.
- 15.12That light which resides in the sun, illuminating the whole world; that which is in the…
- 15.13Permeating the earth, I support all beings with My energy; and having become the watery…
15.14Having become the fire Vaisvanara, I abide in the bodies of living beings and, associated…
- 15.15And I am seated in the hearts of all; from Me come memory and knowledge, as well as their…
- 15.16Two Purushas there are in this world: the perishable and the imperishable. All beings are…
- 15.17But distinct is the Supreme Purusha, called the highest Self, indestructible and Lord, who…
- 15.18As I transcend the perishable and am even higher than the imperishable, I am declared to…
- 15.19He who, undeluded, knows Me as the highest Purusha, he, knowing all, worships Me with his…
- 15.20Thus, I have imparted to you this most secret science, O sinless one; by knowing this, one…
Word-by-word→
- aham
- I
- annam
- foods
- deham
- the body
- bhūtvā
- becoming
- pachāmi
- I digest
- prāṇinām
- of all living beings
- āśhritaḥ
- situated
- samāyuktaḥ
- keeping in balance
- chatuḥ-vidham
- the four kinds
- prāṇa-apāna
- outgoing and incoming breath
- vaiśhvānaraḥ
- fire of digestion
Themes
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- 2.18These bodies of the embodied Self, which are eternal, indestructible, and immeasurable,…
- 8.10At the time of death, with an unwavering mind, endowed with devotion, by the power of…