On Bhagavad Gita: The world as inverted Peepal tree

Acharya Prashant
7 min readJan 8, 2021

The following is an excerpt from a samvaad (dialogue) session with Acharya Prashant.

श्रीभगवानुवाच

ऊर्ध्वमूलमध:शाखमश्वत्थं प्राहुरव्ययम् ।

छन्दांसि यस्य पर्णानि यस्तं वेद स वेदवित् ।। 15.1 ।।

śhrī-bhagavān uvācha

ūrdhva-mūlam adhaḥ-śhākham aśhvatthaṁ prāhur avyayam

chhandānsi yasya parṇāni yas taṁ veda sa veda-vit

They speak of an eternal Asvattha rooted above and branching below whose leaves are the Vedas; he who knows it; is a Veda-knower.

~ Shrimad Bhagavad Gita, Chapter 15, Verse 1

✥ ✥ ✥

अधश्चोर्ध्वं प्रसृतास्तस्य शाखा

गुणप्रवृद्धा विषयप्रवाला: ।।

अधश्च मूलान्यनुसन्ततानि

कर्मानुबन्धीनि मनुष्यलोके ।। 15.2 ।।

adhaśh chordhvaṁ prasṛitās tasya śhākhā

guṇa-pravṛiddhā viṣhaya-pravālāḥ

adhaśh cha mūlāny anusantatāni

karmānubandhīni manuṣhya-loke

Below and above spread its branches, nourished by the Gunas; sense-objects are its buds; and below in the human world stretch forth the roots, originating action.

~ Shrimad Bhagavad Gita, Chapter 15, Verse 2

✥ ✥ ✥

न रूपमस्येह तथोपलभ्यते

नान्तो न चादिर्न च सम्प्रतिष्ठा ।

अश्वत्थमेनं सुविरूढमूल

मसङ्गशस्त्रेण दृढेन छित्त्वा ।। 15.3 ।।

na rūpam asyeha

Acharya Prashant