Shloka 30
Adhyaya 8 — Harishchandra’s Trial: Truth, the Sale of Family, and Bondage to a Chandala
पत्नी उवाच । हा महाराज कस्येदमपध्यानमुपस्थितम् ।
यत् त्वं निपतितो भूमौ राङ्कवास्तरणोचितः ॥
patny uvāca hā mahārāja kasyedam apadhyānam upasthitam | yat tvaṁ nipatito bhūmau rāṅkavāstaraṇocitaḥ ||
Die Gemahlin sprach: „Weh, o großer König! Welches Unheil oder welcher böse Einfluss ist über dich gekommen, dass du—der du Decke und Lager verdienst—auf den nackten Boden gestürzt bist?“
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FAQs
The verse highlights the shock of impermanence: worldly status (kingship) can collapse swiftly, and this reversal becomes a catalyst for deeper inquiry. Ethically, it reflects the household voice of dharma—concern for dignity, wellbeing, and the proper station of a ruler—while implicitly pointing to the limits of mere social rank when fate (or unseen causes) turns adverse.
This verse is not directly Sarga/Pratisarga/Vamsha/Manvantara/Vamshanucarita in content; it belongs to narrative-ethical instruction embedded in the Purana’s ‘vamśānucarita’-adjacent storytelling mode (accounts of kings and their experiences), serving as a frame that leads into Devi worship and the theological core of the Devi Mahatmyam.
Symbolically, the ‘king on the ground’ signifies the ego’s dethronement: the collapse of external supports (power, comfort) forces attention inward. In the Devi Mahatmyam’s arc, such dislocation prepares the seeker for śaraṇāgati (taking refuge) in the Goddess, who alone stabilizes dharma and restores inner sovereignty.