Narada Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 72

Bharata’s Attachment and the Palanquin Teaching on ‘I’ and ‘Mine’

Devanagari script

सुखदुःखोपभोगौ तु तौ देहाद्युपपादकौ । धर्माधर्मोद्भवौ भोक्तुं जंतुर्देहादिमृच्छति ॥ ७२ ॥

Transliteration

sukhaduḥkhopabhogau tu tau dehādyupapādakau | dharmādharmodbhavau bhoktuṃ jaṃturdehādimṛcchati || 72 ||

Translation

إن تذوّق اللذّة والألم هو حقًّا ما يُنشئ الجسد وسائر أحوال التجلّي في البدن. ومن dharma و adharma تنشأ النتائج، فينال الكائن الحيّ جسدًا وأحوالًا أخرى ليذوق ثمارها.

Word by Word

• सुख-दुःख-उपभोगौ: the experiences/enjoyments of pleasure and pain
• सुख-दुःख-उपभोगौ: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: सुख (प्रातिपदिक) + दुःख (प्रातिपदिक) + उपभोग (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (1st/Nominative), द्विवचन; समासः—द्वन्द्व (सुखदुःखयोः उपभोगौ)

• तु: but/indeed
• तु: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Discourse particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तु (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; निपात (particle), विरोध/विशेषार्थक

• तौ: those two
• तौ: Karta (कर्ता/Subject; apposition)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (1st/Nominative), द्विवचन; सर्वनाम

• देह-आदि-उपपादकौ: producing (the) body and so on
• देह-आदि-उपपादकौ: Visheshana (विशेषण/Qualifier of ‘सुखदुःखोपभोगौ/तौ’)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: देह (प्रातिपदिक) + आदि (अव्यय/प्रातिपदिक) + उपपादक (प्रातिपदिक; कृदन्त-आधारित)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (1st/Nominative), द्विवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुष (देहादीनाम् उपपादकौ = producing/bringing about bodies etc.)

• धर्म-अधर्म-उद्भवौ: arising from dharma and adharma
• धर्म-अधर्म-उद्भवौ: Visheshana (विशेषण/Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: धर्म (प्रातिपदिक) + अधर्म (प्रातिपदिक) + उद्भव (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (1st/Nominative), द्विवचन; समासः—द्वन्द्व (धर्माधर्मयोः उद्भवौ = arising from dharma and adharma)

• भोक्तुम्: to experience
• भोक्तुम्: Prayojana (प्रयोजन/Purpose)
• Type: Verb
• Root: भुज् (धातु)
• Form: तुमुन्-प्रत्ययान्त अव्यय-रूप (infinitive); अर्थः—कर्तुं/भोक्तुं (to experience/enjoy)

• जन्तुः: the living being
• जन्तुः: Karta (कर्ता/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: जन्तु (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• देह-आदि: a body and the like
• देह-आदि: Karma (कर्म/Object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: देह (प्रातिपदिक) + आदि (अव्यय/प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुष (देहश्चादयश्च = body etc., as a set)

• ऋच्छति: attains/comes to
• ऋच्छति: Kriya (क्रिया/Finite verb)
• Type: Verb
• Root: ऋच्छ् (धातु)
• Form: लट्-लकार (Present), परस्मैपद, प्रथम-पुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन

Speaker

Sanatkumara (teaching Narada)

Vrata Kalpa

Vrata: none

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: shanta

Secondary Rasa: karuna

FAQs

What is the spiritual significance of this verse in Narada Purana?

It states a core Moksha-Dharma principle: embodiment is driven by karmic fruition—pleasure and pain, born from dharma and adharma, necessitate a body so the jīva can undergo their results, highlighting the mechanism of saṃsāra.

How does this verse explain the path of devotion (Bhakti)?

By showing that dharma/adharma bind the jīva to repeated birth for experiencing sukha-duḥkha, it implicitly points to the need for liberation-oriented practice—bhakti to Bhagavān (especially Viṣṇu in Narada Purana) as a means to transcend karmic bondage rather than merely generating further results.

What practical Vedic knowledge (Vedanga) is highlighted here?

The verse primarily teaches karma-siddhānta (cause-and-effect of actions) rather than a specific Vedāṅga; practically, it supports Dharma-śāstra reasoning used in ritual and conduct—understanding how righteous and unrighteous acts mature into lived experiences.