奥义书 · Bṛhadāraṇyaka 3,9.28:1
॥
天城文
तान् ह एतैः श्लोकैः पप्रच्छ यथा वृक्षः वनस्पतिः तथा एव पुरुषः अमृषा तस्य लोमानि पर्णानि त्वक् अस्य उत्पाटिका बहिः
转写 (IAST)
tān ha etaiḥ ślokaiḥ papraccha yathā vṛkṣaḥ vanaspatiḥ tathā eva puruṣaḥ amṛṣā tasya lomāni parṇāni tvak asya utpāṭikā bahiḥ
逐字释义
梵语IAST释义
तान्tānto them; those
हhasurely; as is known
एतैःetaiḥby them; with these
श्लोकैःślokaiḥin verses; in stanzas
पप्रच्छpapracchaasked; put a question
यथाyathāhow; as far as
वृक्षःvṛkṣaḥa tree (vṛkṣa); the tree; the tree
वनस्पतिःvanaspatiḥthe lord of the forest (vanaspati); the forest sovereign; the lord of the forest
तथाtathāthus; in this way
एवevaindeed; only
पुरुषःpuruṣaḥthe puruṣa; the person; the indweller
अमृषाamṛṣātruly (amṛṣā — 'not falsely'); not falsely; verily
तस्यtasyait; his
लोमानिlomānithe hairs (loman, pl.); body-hairs; the hairs
पर्णानिparṇānithe leaves (parṇa, pl.); foliage; the leaves
त्वक्tvakthe skin; touch
अस्यasyait; of this
उत्पाटिकाutpāṭikāthe outer bark (utpāṭikā); the upper bark; the bark
बहिःbahiḥoutside; outward
译文
And he questioned them in verses: "As a tree, a lord of the forest, so truly is a man: his hairs are the leaves, his skin the outer bark.
版本
0a38400b4853 · 发布于 2026年7月27日 01:08:05 UTC
可用语言RUEN用方向键翻颂
The victor ends the night not with a verdict but with a song: the cycle of verses "man as tree" (vṛkṣa-puruṣa), an ancient brahmodya riddle, laid before the speechless assembly. The first correspondence is sketched in broad strokes: hairs are the foliage, skin the bark: a man is set beside a tree as kinsman beside kinsman.
The comparison is no poetic liberty: the whole Veda thinks of man and tree as one breed of the living (the Upaniṣads swore by a tree in the argument about the jīva — ChU 6.11). But the verses will lead further than botany: the comparison has a point to it — a question about the root, which no one but a knower of Brahman will answer.