Chapter X · Śloka 26
अश्वत्थः सर्ववृक्षाणां देवर्षीणां च नारदः ।
गन्धर्वाणां चित्ररथः सिद्धानां कपिलो मुनिः ॥
गन्धर्वाणां चित्ररथः सिद्धानां कपिलो मुनिः ॥
aśvatthaḥ sarva-vṛkṣāṇāṃ devarṣīṇāṃ ca nāradaḥ |
gandharvāṇāṃ citrarathaḥ siddhānāṃ kapilo muniḥ ||
gandharvāṇāṃ citrarathaḥ siddhānāṃ kapilo muniḥ ||
Among all trees I am the Aśvattha (sacred fig); among divine sages I am Nārada; among Gandharvas I am Citraratha; and among the Siddhas I am the sage Kapila.
The Aśvattha, the sacred fig or pīpal tree, is venerated across India as an emblem of eternal life and wisdom. Nārada is the foremost divine sage who moves freely between worlds, and Kapila is revered as the founder of the Sāṃkhya philosophical tradition.