Padma Purana — Bhumi Khanda, Shloka 131
Pitṛmātṛtīrtha Greatness & the Discourse on Embodiment: Karma, Birth, Impurity, and Dispassion
यद्दुःखं मरणे जंतोर्न तस्येहोपमा क्वचित् । हा तात मातः कांतेति क्रंदत्येवं सुदुःखितः
yadduḥkhaṃ maraṇe jaṃtorna tasyehopamā kvacit | hā tāta mātaḥ kāṃteti kraṃdatyevaṃ suduḥkhitaḥ
Das Leid, das ein Wesen zur Stunde des Todes empfindet, hat in dieser Welt nirgends ein Gleichnis. In tiefster Qual ruft es immer wieder: „O Vater! O Mutter! O Geliebte(r)!“, und klagt herzzerreißend.
Unspecified (narrative voice within Bhūmi-khaṇḍa; speaker not identifiable from the single verse alone)
Concept: The suffering at death is incomparable; attachment to relationships erupts as lamentation, revealing the cost of clinging and the need to cultivate inner refuge before the final hour.
Application: Practice daily detachment with tenderness: love family, but train the mind through prayer/japa so that at crisis moments it turns to the Divine rather than panic; prepare end-of-life support with sacred sound (Hari-nāma).
Primary Rasa: karuna
Secondary Rasa: bhayanaka
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"A dying person reaches outward with trembling hands while family members lean close—father, mother, and beloved—each face flooded with grief. The room is heavy with incense and a single oil lamp; the air seems to ripple with the repeated cry ‘hā tāt, mātaḥ, kānte,’ while a faint doorway of light in the background hints at the soul’s onward journey beyond the scene’s heartbreak.","primary_figures":["A dying person","Father","Mother","Beloved/spouse","Attendants or family members"],"setting":"A modest home interior or hermitage room with a low cot, oil lamp, incense smoke, and a small altar niche (unattended) suggesting the missed turn toward the Divine in the moment of attachment.","lighting_mood":"moonlit","color_palette":["silver gray","lamp-gold","indigo","rose brown","smoke white"],"tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore painting style: emotionally charged deathbed scene with expressive faces; gold leaf on the lamp flame and subtle halo-like accents to heighten sacred gravity; rich maroons and greens in textiles; ornate border framing the lamentation; traditional South Indian jewelry and garments rendered with gem-like detail.","pahari_prompt":"Pahari miniature style: intimate interior with delicate lines; soft moonlight entering from a window; refined, tearful expressions; muted palette with gentle gold from the lamp; lyrical realism emphasizing human vulnerability and separation.","kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala mural style: bold outlined figures clustered around the cot; stylized tears and expressive eyes; strong red/yellow/green pigments contrasted with a dark indigo background; incense smoke as rhythmic curves; temple-wall narrative intensity.","pichwai_prompt":"Pichwai cloth painting style: symbolic lament scene framed by lotus and floral borders; deep blue ground with gold motifs; figures arranged in a devotional tableau; a small, distant Viṣṇu emblem (śaṅkha-chakra) in the border to suggest the uninvoked refuge."}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"dramatic","suggested_raga":"Bhairavi","pace":"slow-meditative","voice_tone":"emotional","sound_elements":["soft sobbing ambience (subtle)","low temple bell","incense crackle (imagined)","tanpura drone","silence after the refrain"]}
Sandhi Resolution Notes: यत् + दुःखम् = यद्दुःखम्; जन्तोः + न = जन्तोर्न; तस्य + इह + उपमा = तस्येहोपमा; कान्त + इति = कांतेति; क्रन्दति + एवम् = क्रंदत्येवं.
FAQs
It underscores the unmatched anguish experienced at death, using the cry for family and loved ones to highlight human attachment and the intensity of separation.
Yes. By portraying death as a moment when worldly supports fail and lamentation arises, it implicitly encourages reflection on impermanence and cultivating detachment and spiritual preparedness.
These are vocatives—“father,” “mother,” and “beloved”—representing the dearest human relationships that one instinctively clings to and calls upon in extreme distress.