Shloka 23

The Greatness of the Kāliṇdī (Yamunā): Merit of Bathing, Charity, and Faith

Devanagari script

निष्ठुरं दुर्धरं दुष्टं दोषत्रयविदूषितम् । अशुचितापि दुर्गंधि तापत्रयविमोहितम्

Transliteration

niṣṭhuraṃ durdharaṃ duṣṭaṃ doṣatrayavidūṣitam | aśucitāpi durgaṃdhi tāpatrayavimohitam

Translation

إنه قاسٍ عسيرُ الكبحِ وخبيثٌ، مُلوَّثٌ بالدوṣا الثلاثة (العيوب). ومع أنه نجسٌ تفوح منه رائحةٌ كريهة، وهو مُضلَّلٌ بالآلام الثلاثة (tāpa-traya).

Word by Word

• निष्ठुरम्: harsh, pitiless
• निष्ठुरम्: विशेषण (Adjectival modifier) (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: निष्ठुर (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा/द्वितीया (Nom./Acc.), एकवचन (Singular); विशेषण-प्रयोग

• दुर्धरम्: hard to bear/endure
• दुर्धरम्: विशेषण (Adjectival modifier) (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: दुर्धर (प्रातिपदिक; दुर् + धर)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा/द्वितीया (Nom./Acc.), एकवचन (Singular); विशेषण-प्रयोग

• दुष्टम्: wicked, corrupt
• दुष्टम्: विशेषण (Adjectival modifier) (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: दुष्ट (प्रातिपदिक; from √दुष्/दुष्-भाव, lexicalized)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा/द्वितीया (Nom./Acc.), एकवचन (Singular); विशेषण-प्रयोग

• दोष-त्रय-विदूषितम्: tainted by the three doṣas
• दोष-त्रय-विदूषितम्: विशेषण (Adjectival modifier) (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: दोषत्रयविदूषित (प्रातिपदिक; दोष + त्रय + विदूषित [क्त from √दूष्])
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा/द्वितीया (Nom./Acc.), एकवचन (Singular); क्त-प्रत्ययान्त (past passive participle) from धातु √दूष् (to taint), 'tainted by the three दोष-s'

• अशुचिता: impurity
• अशुचिता: हेतु/भाव (Cause/State) (भाव)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अशुचिता (प्रातिपदिक; a-शुचि + ता)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग (Feminine), प्रथमा (Nominative), एकवचन (Singular); भाववाचक-नाम (abstract noun)

• अपि: also, even
• अपि: सम्बन्ध (Particle relation) (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अपि (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (particle), समुच्चय/अपि-कार (also/even)

• दुर्गन्धि: foul-smelling
• दुर्गन्धि: विशेषण (Adjectival modifier) (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: दुर्गन्धि (प्रातिपदिक; दुर् + गन्धि)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा/द्वितीया (Nom./Acc.), एकवचन (Singular); इ-प्रत्ययान्त विशेषण (ending in -i), विशेषण-प्रयोग

• ताप-त्रय-विमोहितम्: bewildered by the three sufferings
• ताप-त्रय-विमोहितम्: विशेषण (Adjectival modifier) (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: तापत्रयविमोहित (प्रातिपदिक; ताप + त्रय + विमोहित [क्त from √मुह् with vi-])
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा/द्वितीया (Nom./Acc.), एकवचन (Singular); क्त-प्रत्ययान्त from धातु √मुह् (to be deluded) with उपसर्ग vi-, 'deluded by the three afflictions'

Speaker

Unspecified (context needed from surrounding verses to attribute confidently, often within a Purāṇic dialogue frame).

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: bibhatsa

Secondary Rasa: shanta

Sandhi Resolution Notes

Sandhi Resolution Notes: अशुचितापि = अशुचिता + अपि; दोषत्रयविदूषितम् = दोष + त्रय + विदूषितम्; तापत्रयविमोहितम् = ताप + त्रय + विमोहितम्.

FAQs

What is meant by tāpa-traya (the threefold afflictions) in this verse?

Tāpa-traya is the classic triad of suffering: ādhyātmika (internal—body/mind), ādhibhautika (external—other beings/environment), and ādhidaivika (cosmic/divine forces). The verse says the subject is bewildered by these pressures.

What does doṣa-traya refer to here—moral faults or the Ayurvedic humors?

Doṣa-traya can denote the Ayurvedic triad (vāta, pitta, kapha) or a contextual triad of defects. Without adjacent verses, the safest reading is “a triad of faults,” while noting the common Ayurvedic resonance.

What ethical lesson does the verse convey?

It portrays a condition (often read as an untrained mind or corrupt disposition) as cruel, uncontrolled, impure, and deluded—implying that restraint, purification, and clarity are necessary to overcome suffering and moral degeneration.