Shloka 10

Prāyaścitta for Mahāpātakas (Great Sins), Vows, Tīrtha, and Sin-Destroying Observances

Devanagari script

चीरवासा द्विजो ऽरण्ये चरेद्ब्रह्महणव्रतम् / गुरुभार्यां समारुह्य ब्राह्मणः काममोहितः

Transliteration

cīravāsā dvijo 'raṇye caredbrahmahaṇavratam / gurubhāryāṃ samāruhya brāhmaṇaḥ kāmamohitaḥ

Translation

In Rindenkleidern soll der Zweimalgeborene im Wald weilen und das Sühnegelübde für brahma-hatyā (Tötung eines Brāhmaṇa) auf sich nehmen. Ein Brāhmaṇa, vom Begehren betört, der die Gattin seines Guru schändet, muss ebendiese Buße vollziehen.

Word by Word

• चीरवासा: wearing bark-garments
• चीरवासा: Karta (Subject-qualifier/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: चीर + वासस् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; बहुव्रीहिः—चीरं वासो यस्य सः (one whose clothing is bark/cloth rags)

• द्विजः: a twice-born man
• द्विजः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: द्विज (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• अरण्ये: in the forest
• अरण्ये: Adhikarana (Location/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अरण्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति, एकवचन (neuter, locative singular)

• चरेत्: should practice; should perform
• चरेत्: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: चर् (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (optative), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन (optative, 3rd person singular)

• ब्रह्महणव्रतम्: the vow (penance) for Brahmin-slaying
• ब्रह्महणव्रतम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ब्रह्महन् + व्रत (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; समासः—ब्रह्महणव्रत = ब्रह्महणस्य व्रतम् (vow/penance for Brahmin-slaying)

• गुरुभार्याम्: the teacher’s wife
• गुरुभार्याम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: गुरु + भार्या (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया-विभक्ति, एकवचन; समासः—गुरुभार्या = गुरोः भार्या (teacher’s wife)

• समारुह्य: having mounted; having approached
• समारुह्य: Purvakala (Prior action/पूर्वकाल)
• Type: Verb
• Root: रुह् (धातु) + सम् + आ (उपसर्ग)
• Form: क्त्वान्त-अव्यय (gerund): having mounted/approached (lit. climbed upon)

• ब्राह्मणः: a Brahmin
• ब्राह्मणः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ब्राह्मण (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• काममोहितः: deluded by lust
• काममोहितः: Karta (Subject-qualifier/कर्ता-विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: काम + मोहित (कृदन्त, क्त; √मुह्)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; समासः—काममोहित = कामेन मोहितः (deluded by desire)

Speaker

Lord Viṣṇu (in discourse to Garuḍa/Vinatā-putra)

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Mahāpātaka prāyaścitta: brahmahatyā-vrata and severe forest austerity are prescribed; sexual transgression against the guru’s wife is treated as a grave dharmic rupture requiring heavy atonement.

Vedantic Theme: Mastery of kāma and ahaṅkāra as prerequisites for inner purity; tapas as a means to weaken vāsanās and restore sattva.

Application: Cultivate boundaries and accountability in teacher-student relationships; when ethical breaches occur, prioritize protection of victims, confession, removal from positions of trust, and long-term rehabilitative discipline.

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: bhayanaka

Secondary Rasa: karuna

Geographic Context

Type: forest/āśrama-wilderness setting

Cross References

Related Themes: Garuda Purana: prāyaścitta for mahāpātakas; emphasis on brahmahatyā-vrata and severe vows (general internal linkage)

Characters & Entities

• Brāhmaṇa
• Guru

FAQs

What is the importance of prāyaścitta (atonement) in the Garuda Purana?

This verse frames prāyaścitta as a corrective dharmic response to mahāpātakas (grave sins), prescribing disciplined austerity—such as living in the forest in bark-garments—to purify the offender’s conduct and consequences.

How does this verse explain the path of the soul?

By linking severe wrongdoing with mandatory expiation, it implies that unatoned grave sins burden the jīva with heavy karmic results; dharmic penance is presented as a means to mitigate those consequences before death and afterlife reckoning.

Practical application of this wisdom today?

Uphold strict boundaries around teacher–student ethics, control lust and impulse, and when harm is done, seek sincere accountability and corrective discipline rather than denial—aligning one’s life with dharma.