Shloka 90
Jñāna-hetu-nirūpaṇa
On the Causes/Means of Knowledge
तस्मात्षड्गुणतो हीनः शंबरो लोककण्टकः / शंबरस्य समो ज्ञेयः शाल्वो दैत्येषु चाधमः
tasmātṣaḍguṇato hīnaḥ śaṃbaro lokakaṇṭakaḥ / śaṃbarasya samo jñeyaḥ śālvo daityeṣu cādhamaḥ
Daher ist Śambara—der an sechs Tugenden Mangel hat—ein Dorn für die Welt. Und Śālva ist als Śambara gleich zu erkennen, der Niedrigste unter den Daityas.
Lord Vishnu (speaking to Garuda/Vinata-putra)
Concept: Deficiency in virtues leads to becoming a public harm; moral lack manifests as social suffering.
Vedantic Theme: Tamas/rajas dominance produces duḥkha for self and world; adharma is self-propagating within saṃsāra.
Application: Treat vice as not merely personal but societal; cultivate virtues to avoid becoming ‘lokakaṇṭaka’ in family/work/community.
Primary Rasa: raudra
Secondary Rasa: bhayanaka
Related Themes: Garuda Purana 3.12.88–92 (continued comparative hierarchy; ‘lokakaṇṭaka’ evaluative epithet)
FAQs
This verse frames the loss of core virtues as the root of becoming a “thorn to the world,” showing that inner character (virtue) is central to dharma and social well-being.
By condemning asuric, virtue-less conduct, it implies that adharma shapes one’s karmic trajectory—leading toward suffering and lower states described elsewhere in the Purana’s afterlife teachings.
Cultivate the opposite of “deficiency in virtues”: practice self-restraint, truthfulness, compassion, and responsibility so one does not become a source of harm to society.