Sloka 87
Sloka 87
Original Text:
त्वङ्मांसरुधिरस्नायुमेदोमज्जास्थिसंकुलम् । पूर्णं मूत्रपुरीषाभ्यां स्थूलं निन्द्यमिदं वपुः ॥ ८७ ॥
Certainly! Here is the detailed analysis of the given sloka:
- **Transliteration:**
``` tvaṅ-māṃsa-rudhira-snāyu-medo-majja-asthi-saṅkulam | pūrṇaṃ mūtra-purīṣābhyāṃ sthūlaṃ nindyam idaṃ vapuḥ || 87 || ```
- **Translation:**
``` This body, filled with skin, flesh, blood, sinews, fat, marrow, and bones, full of urine and feces, is gross and contemptible. ```
- **Word Meanings:**
* **tvaṅ** - skin * **māṃsa** - flesh * **rudhira** - blood * **snāyu** - sinews * **medo** - fat * **majja** - marrow * **asthi** - bones * **saṅkulam** - full of, clustered * **pūrṇam** - filled * **mūtra** - urine * **purīṣābhyām** - by excrements (feces) * **sthūlam** - gross * **nindyam** - contemptible, to be censured * **idam** - this * **vapuḥ** - body
- **Commentary:**
This sloka vividly describes the physical human body, using a perspective that focuses on its material and impermanent nature. Overlaying the dense constituents of the body—skin, flesh, blood, sinews, fat, marrow, and bones— the text underscores the view that the body is merely a conglomerate of transient materials. Additionally, it emphasizes the body's association with waste products such as urine and feces, contributing to the perception of the body as something crude or objectionable.
This sloka reflects a critical view often found in Vedantic and ascetic literature, where the goal is to detach the mind from identifying too closely with the body, encouraging practitioners to seek a deeper understanding of the self beyond the physical form. Here, the body is presented as 'sthūlam' (gross) and 'nindyam' (contemptible), urging the aspirant to recognize the inherently impermanent and flawed nature of the physical existence.
By contemplating such a description, individuals are reminded to look beyond the mundane attachments to physicality and move towards attaining a more profound spiritual awareness or enlightenment, which is often the ultimate aim in Vedantic practice. This perspective helps in fostering mental renunciation, promoting higher-level thinking about life, existence, and true identity vis-a-vis eternal spiritual truths.
Further Readings: