योगवासिष्ठः yogavāsiṣṭhaḥ - book-7, chapter-209, verse-20

राजोवाच ।
धर्माधर्मौ कथं ब्रह्मन्कारणं देहसंविदः ।
तस्यामूर्तौ कथं चैको द्विशरीरत्वमृच्छति ॥ २० ॥

rājovāca ,
dharmādharmau kathaṃ brahmankāraṇaṃ dehasaṃvidaḥ ,
tasyāmūrtau kathaṃ caiko dviśarīratvamṛcchati 20

20. rāja uvāca | dharmādharmau katham brahman kāraṇam dehasaṃvidaḥ
| tasyāḥ amūrtau katham ca ekaḥ dviśarīratvam ṛcchati ||

20. rāja uvāca.
he brahman,
dharmādharmau katham dehasaṃvidaḥ kāraṇam? ca ekaḥ tasyāḥ amūrtau katham dviśarīratvam ṛcchati?

20. The King said: 'O Brahmin, how can the principles of natural law (dharma) and their opposite be the cause of embodied consciousness? And how does that (consciousness), being formless, attain a state of having two bodies?'

Words meanings summery:

• राज (rāja) - The King (king)

• उवाच (uvāca) - said (said, spoke)

• धर्माधर्मौ (dharmādharmau) - the principles of natural law (dharma) and their opposite (righteousness and unrighteousness, dharma and adharma, merit and demerit)

• कथम् (katham) - how (how, why)

• ब्रह्मन् (brahman) - O Brahmin (addressing Vasiṣṭha) (O Brahmin, O Brahman)

• कारणम् (kāraṇam) - cause (cause, reason, instrument)

• देहसंविदः (dehasaṁvidaḥ) - of embodied consciousness (of embodied consciousness, of the consciousness of the body)

• तस्याः (tasyāḥ) - of that (consciousness) (of that (feminine))

• अमूर्तौ (amūrtau) - in the formless state (of consciousness) (in the formless state, in incorporeality)

• कथम् (katham) - how (how, why)

• च (ca) - and (and, also)

• एकः (ekaḥ) - one (entity/consciousness) (one, single, unique)

• द्विशरीरत्वम् (dviśarīratvam) - a state of having two bodies (the state of having two bodies, two-bodiedness)

• ऋच्छति (ṛcchati) - attains (attains, reaches, obtains)

Words meanings and morphology

राज (rāja) - The King (king)

(noun)

Nominative, masculine, singular of rājan

rājan - king, ruler

Note: Subject of 'uvāca'.

उवाच (uvāca) - said (said, spoke)

(verb)

3rd person , singular, active, perfect (lit) of vac

perfect tense, parasmaipada, 3rd person singular

Root: vac (class 2)

Note: Past tense verb.

धर्माधर्मौ (dharmādharmau) - the principles of natural law (dharma) and their opposite (righteousness and unrighteousness, dharma and adharma, merit and demerit)

(noun)

Nominative, masculine, dual of dharmādharma

dharmādharma - dharma and adharma, righteousness and unrighteousness, merit and demerit

Compound type : dvandva (dharma+adharma)

• dharma – natural law, righteousness, duty, virtue, constitution, intrinsic nature
  noun (masculine)
  from dhṛ
  Root: dhṛ (class 1)
• adharma – unrighteousness, unvirtuous act, non-natural law, violation of natural law
  noun (masculine)
  negative of dharma
  Prefix: a

Note: Subject of the implied verb 'are'.

कथम् (katham) - how (how, why)

(indeclinable)

Note: Interrogative adverb.

ब्रह्मन् (brahman) - O Brahmin (addressing Vasiṣṭha) (O Brahmin, O Brahman)

(noun)

Vocative, masculine, singular of brahman

brahman - Brahmin, priest, the Absolute (brahman)

Note: Addressing Vasiṣṭha.

कारणम् (kāraṇam) - cause (cause, reason, instrument)

(noun)

Nominative, neuter, singular of kāraṇa

kāraṇa - cause, reason, instrument, motive

Root: kṛ (class 8)

Note: Predicate nominative for 'dharmādharmau'.

देहसंविदः (dehasaṁvidaḥ) - of embodied consciousness (of embodied consciousness, of the consciousness of the body)

(noun)

Genitive, feminine, singular of dehasaṃvid

dehasaṁvid - consciousness of the body, embodied consciousness

Compound type : tatpuruṣa (deha+saṃvid)

• deha – body, form, physical frame
  noun (masculine)
• saṃvid – consciousness, understanding, knowledge
  noun (feminine)
  from sam-vid
  Prefix: sam
  Root: vid (class 2)

Note: Dependent on 'kāraṇam'.

तस्याः (tasyāḥ) - of that (consciousness) (of that (feminine))

(pronoun)

Genitive, feminine, singular of tad

tad - that, it

Note: Qualifies 'amūrtau'.

अमूर्तौ (amūrtau) - in the formless state (of consciousness) (in the formless state, in incorporeality)

(noun)

Locative, feminine, singular of amūrti

amūrti - formlessness, incorporeality

Note: Refers to the state of consciousness.

कथम् (katham) - how (how, why)

(indeclinable)

Note: Interrogative adverb for the second question.

च (ca) - and (and, also)

(indeclinable)

Note: Connects the two questions.

एकः (ekaḥ) - one (entity/consciousness) (one, single, unique)

(pronoun)

Nominative, masculine, singular of eka

eka - one, single, alone, unique

Note: Subject of 'ṛcchati'.

द्विशरीरत्वम् (dviśarīratvam) - a state of having two bodies (the state of having two bodies, two-bodiedness)

(noun)

Accusative, neuter, singular of dviśarīratva

dviśarīratva - state of having two bodies, two-bodiedness

Compound type : tatpuruṣa (dvi+śarīra+tva)

• dvi – two
  numeral
• śarīra – body, physical form
  noun (neuter)
• tva – suffix for 'state of being', '-ness'
  suffix (neuter)

Note: Object of 'ṛcchati'.

ऋच्छति (ṛcchati) - attains (attains, reaches, obtains)

(verb)

3rd person , singular, active, present (laṭ) of ṛcch

present tense, parasmaipada, 3rd person singular

Root: ṛ (class 1)

Note: Verb for 'ekaḥ'.

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