महाभारतः mahābhārataḥ - book-12, chapter-239, verse-7

शुक उवाच ।
अकरोद्यच्छरीरेषु कथं तदुपलक्षयेत् ।
इन्द्रियाणि गुणाः केचित्कथं तानुपलक्षयेत् ॥७॥

7. śuka uvāca ,
akarodyaccharīreṣu kathaṁ tadupalakṣayet ,
indriyāṇi guṇāḥ kecitkathaṁ tānupalakṣayet.

7. śuka uvāca akarot yat śarīreṣu katham tat upalakṣayet
indriyāṇi guṇāḥ kecit katham tān upalakṣayet

7. śuka uvāca.
yat [saḥ] śarīreṣu akarot,
tat katham upalakṣayet? kecit indriyāṇi,
guṇāḥ,
tān katham upalakṣayet?

7. Śuka said: 'How is one to discern what (the Creator) made in various bodies? And how is one to perceive those certain senses and (material) qualities (guṇas)?'

Words meanings summery:

• शुक (śuka) - Śuka (name of a sage)

• उवाच (uvāca) - he said, he spoke

• अकरोत् (akarot) - he made, he did, he created

• यत् (yat) - what, which, that which

• शरीरेषु (śarīreṣu) - in bodies, among bodies

• कथम् (katham) - how, in what manner, why

• तत् (tat) - that, it

• उपलक्षयेत् (upalakṣayet) - one should perceive, one should discern, one should notice

• इन्द्रियाणि (indriyāṇi) - senses, organs of sense

• गुणाः (guṇāḥ) - the material qualities (sattva, rajas, tamas) (qualities, attributes, properties (guṇas))

• केचित् (kecit) - some, certain, any

• कथम् (katham) - how, in what manner, why

• तान् (tān) - them, those

• उपलक्षयेत् (upalakṣayet) - one should perceive, one should discern, one should notice

Words meanings and morphology

शुक (śuka) - Śuka (name of a sage)

(proper noun)

Nominative, masculine, singular of śuka

śuka - parrot; name of a sage (son of Vyāsa)

उवाच (uvāca) - he said, he spoke

(verb)

3rd person , singular, active, perfect past (liṭ) of vac

Perfect tense form (liṭ) of root vac, with reduplication.

Root: vac (class 2)

Note: parasamaipada form

अकरोत् (akarot) - he made, he did, he created

(verb)

3rd person , singular, active, imperfect past (laṅ) of kṛ

Root: kṛ (class 8)

Note: parasamaipada form

यत् (yat) - what, which, that which

(pronoun)

neuter, singular of yad

yad - which, what, whoever

शरीरेषु (śarīreṣu) - in bodies, among bodies

(noun)

Locative, neuter, plural of śarīra

śarīra - body, physical form

कथम् (katham) - how, in what manner, why

(indeclinable)

तत् (tat) - that, it

(pronoun)

neuter, singular of tad

tad - that, he, she, it

उपलक्षयेत् (upalakṣayet) - one should perceive, one should discern, one should notice

(verb)

3rd person , singular, active, optative (liṅ) of upalakṣ

From root lakṣ (to mark, perceive) with prefix upa (near, towards). Optative mood.

Prefix: upa

Root: lakṣ (class 10)

Note: parasamaipada form

इन्द्रियाणि (indriyāṇi) - senses, organs of sense

(noun)

neuter, plural of indriya

indriya - sense organ, faculty, power

Derived from Indra or referring to the senses as powers.

गुणाः (guṇāḥ) - the material qualities (sattva, rajas, tamas) (qualities, attributes, properties (guṇas))

(noun)

Nominative, masculine, plural of guṇa

guṇa - quality, attribute, property, strand, virtue

केचित् (kecit) - some, certain, any

(pronoun)

Nominative, masculine, plural of kimcid

kimcid - some, any, a certain one

Indefinite pronoun formed from kim (who/what) and cid (particle).

Note: Often takes masculine form as default for unspecified 'some'.

कथम् (katham) - how, in what manner, why

(indeclinable)

तान् (tān) - them, those

(pronoun)

Accusative, masculine, plural of tad

tad - that, he, she, it

Note: Refers to indriyāṇi (neuter) and guṇāḥ (masculine). Here, masculine plural accusative is used, possibly implying 'those entities' or because guṇāḥ is masculine.

उपलक्षयेत् (upalakṣayet) - one should perceive, one should discern, one should notice

(verb)

3rd person , singular, active, optative (liṅ) of upalakṣ

From root lakṣ (to mark, perceive) with prefix upa (near, towards). Optative mood.

Prefix: upa

Root: lakṣ (class 10)

Note: parasamaipada form