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## First Understanding: Description of Aquatic Creatures Born from the Womb [38]
What are aquatic creatures born from the womb? These aquatic creatures are of five types: fish, tortoise, crocodile, snake, and whale. The distinctions of all these should be explained according to the *Prajñāpanā Sūtra*, as follows:
These aquatic creatures born from the womb are briefly of two types: sufficient and insufficient.
O Lord! How many bodies are said to be possessed by these beings?
Gautama! Four bodies are said to be possessed by them, such as the *audārika*, *vaikriya*, *taijas*, and *kārmaṇa*.
Their body size ranges from an immeasurable fraction of an inch at the lowest to a thousand yojanas at the highest.
These beings have six types of cohesion, such as *vajrarṣabhanārāca saṁhanana*, *ṛṣabhanārāca saṁhanana*, *nārāca saṁhanana*, *ardhanārāca saṁhanana*, *kolikā saṁhanana*, and *sevārta saṁhanana*.
The structure of the bodies of these beings is of six types: *samacaturastra saṁsthāna*, *nyagrodha parimandala saṁsthāna*, *sādī saṁsthāna*, *kubja saṁsthāna*, *vāmana saṁsthāna*, and *huṇḍa saṁsthāna*.
All these beings have *kaṣāya*, four types of *saṁjñā*, six *leśyā*, five senses, and the first five *samudghāta*. These beings are conscious, not unconscious.
They possess three *veda*, six sufficiencies, six insufficiencies, three *dṛṣṭi*, and three *darśana*. These beings are both knowledgeable and ignorant.
Those who are knowledgeable are either those with two types of knowledge or those with three types of knowledge. Those with two types of knowledge possess *matijñāna* and *śruta jñāna*. Those with three types of knowledge possess *matijñāna*, *śruta jñāna*, and *avadhi jñāna* by rule. Similarly, the ignorant are also of these types.
These beings possess three *yoga* and both *upayoga*. Their food intake is from all six directions. These beings are born from *nairyika* as well as from the seventh hell.
They are also born from all other *tiryanca* except those with immeasurable lifespan, those in the *antarvīpa*, and those in the *akarmabhūmi*. They are also born from all other humans except those in the *akarmabhūmi*, those in the *antarvīpa*, and those with immeasurable lifespan. They are also born from the *devaloka* up to the *sahasrāra*.
Their lowest state is that of the *antarmahart* and their highest state is that of the *pūrva koṭi*. They die both by *samavahata* and *asamavahata* death. After death, they go to the seventh hell, all *tiryanca*, all humans, and the *devaloka* up to the *sahasrāra*.
These beings are of four *gati*, four *prāgati*, possess each body, and are innumerable.
This is the description of aquatic creatures born from the womb.
**Discussion:**
The *Prajñāpanā* instructs us to know the distinctions of aquatic creatures born from the womb. These distinctions, such as fish, tortoise, etc., have been explained in the discussion of the previous *sūtra*.
The description of sufficient and insufficient should also be known as before. The body and other aspects should be known as similar to those of aquatic creatures born from the womb. The difference should be known as follows:
In the case of aquatic creatures born from the womb, four bodies are found.