Srimad Bhagavadgita -Ramsukhdas 1499

Srimad Bhagavadgita Sadhaka Sanjivani -Swami Ramsukhdas

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Chapter 15

Link:- Having explained how He is the source of energy of the cosmic life, in the preceding verse, in the next verse, He explains how He digests food, through the gastric fire.


aham vaisvanaro bhutva praninarim dehamasritah
pranapanasamayuktah pacamyannam caturvidham

As the fire of life, in the bodies of living creatures and united with the Prana and Apana hreaths, I digest, the four kinds of food. 14
Comment:-
Aham vaisvanaro bhutva praninam dehamasritah:- Having described the light in the fire as His light, in the twelfth verse, here in this verse He describes, the gastric fire, that digests the four kinds of food.[1] It means, that it is by God's power, that the fire illumines objects and also digests food. This fire, digests food of immovable creation such as plants, trees and creepers, of movable beings such as birds and beasts etc., as it digests, the food of human beings and enables them to grow. It means, that God in the form of gastric fire, nourishes the bodies of beings.
Pranapanasamayuktah:- In the body, there are five primary vital airs, known as 'Prana', 'Apana, 'Samana', 'Liana' and 'Vyana' and there are five secondary vital airs known as Naga, Karma', 'Krkara', 'Devadatta' and 'Dhananjaya'.[2]' In the verse, the Lord describes, only two main kinds of vital air Prana and Apana which fan the fire, that abides in the stomach and also circulate the essence of the digested food, to every part of the body.
 Pacamyannam caturvidham:- Beings, eat four kinds of food

  1. Bhojya:- That which is eaten, having been chewed with teeth, such as bread and sweet cake etc.
  2. Peya:- That which is swallowed, as milk and juice etc.
  3. Cosya:- That which is sucked, such as sugarcane and mango etc. The immovable beings, such as tree etc., receive food, in this way.
  4. Lehya:- That which has to be licked such, as sauce and honey etc.

These four kinds, can further be divided into many other sub-kinds. The Lord, declares that it is He, Who digests me four kinds of food, by becoming gastric fire. No food, can be digested without His power.

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References

  1. ↑ The fire that abides in the stomach is called Vaisvanara and it digests the food which is eaten.
  2. ↑ The functions of these ten vital airs are as follows: (I) Prana:—It resides in the heart. It exhales air. digests the food and so on. (2) Apana:-lt resides in anus. It inhales the, excretes waste matter and throw out the foetus from the womb. (3) Samana:—It resides in the navel. It circulates the essence of the digested food in all the limbs. (4) Udana:—It abides in the throat. It separares the solid and the liquid portions of food. It separates the subtle body from the physical body and transmigrates it to another body or to the world. (5) Vyana: It abides in whole of the body. It shrinks and expands the body and its parts. (6) Naga:—It's function is belching. (7) Kunna:— It's function is shutting and opening the eyes. (8) Krkara:—It's function is sneezing. (9) Devadatta: It's function is yawning. (10) Dhananjaya: It abides in the body even after death and puffs out the dead body. In fact, only one vital air is differentiated according to its various functions.