Shloka 6

Adhyaya 1 — Jaimini’s Questions on the Mahabharata and the Origin of the Wise Birds

Sanskrit

अत्रार्थश्चैव धर्मश्च कामो मोक्षश्च वर्ण्यते ।

परस्परानुबन्धाश्च सानुबन्धाश्च ते पृथक् ॥

Transliteration

atrārthaś caiva dharmaś ca kāmo mokṣaś ca varṇyate /

parasparānubandhāś ca sānubandhāś ca te pṛthak //

Translation

هنا يُوصَف الأَرثا (artha: الرفاه المادي)، والدهرما (dharma: الواجب القويم)، والكاما (kāma: الرغبة المشروعة)، والموكشا (mokṣa: التحرّر)؛ وتُبَيَّن هذه الموضوعات في ترابطها المتبادل كما تُفَصَّل على حدة، مع ما يتبعها من مسائل فرعية.

Word by Word

अत्रhere

अर्थःartha (material prosperity)

चand

एवindeed

धर्मःdharma (righteousness)

चand

कामःkāma (desire/pleasure)

मोक्षःmokṣa (liberation)

चand

वर्ण्यतेis described

परस्पर-अनुबन्धाःmutual connections

चand

स-अनुबन्धाःconnections along with their adjuncts

चand

तेthey

पृथक्separately

Speakers

Sūta (narrative voice) addressing the listening sages (introductory framing typical of Purāṇas); not within the Devi Māhātmya proper

Verse Rasa

{ "primaryRasa": "shanta", "secondaryRasa": "", "rasaIntensity": 0, "emotionalArcPosition": "", "moodDescriptors": [] }

Key Themes

Puruṣārthas (dharma-artha-kāma-mokṣa)DharmaEthics and life-goalsTextual scope/organization

FAQs

What is the philosophical or ethical takeaway?

The verse frames the Purāṇa as a holistic guide to the four human aims (puruṣārthas). It implies that dharma, artha, and kāma are not isolated pursuits but should be understood in relation to one another, and that mokṣa stands as a culminating aim—while the text will also treat each aim distinctly with its supporting disciplines and consequences.

How does this fit the Pancalakshana (5 characteristics)?

This is a meta-introductory verse (viṣaya-nirdeśa) rather than a direct instance of the pañcalakṣaṇa items (sarga, pratisarga, vaṁśa, manvantara, vaṁśānucarita). Indirectly, it signals that alongside the genealogical and cosmological materials typical of Purāṇas, the Markāṇḍeya also foregrounds dharma-śāstric and mokṣa-oriented instruction.

What is the esoteric significance?

‘Parasparānubandha’ suggests that life-goals form a graded and interdependent ladder: artha supports dharma in sustaining life and ritual order; kāma is to be refined through dharma; and the maturation of dharma culminates in mokṣa. ‘Sānubandha’ indicates that each goal includes its subtle adjuncts—inner dispositions, disciplines, and downstream karmic results—so the teaching is not merely theoretical but causal and transformative.