Shloka 38
Rules of Purity (Shauca) — Rules of Purity (Śauca), Permissible Foods, and the Duties of the Householder and Forest-Dweller
देशानुशिष्टं कुल धर्ममग्र्यं स्वगोत्रधर्मं न हि संत्यजेत् तेनार्थसिद्धिं समुपाचरेत नासत्प्रलापं न च सत्यहीनम्
deśānuśiṣṭaṃ kula dharmamagryaṃ svagotradharmaṃ na hi saṃtyajet tenārthasiddhiṃ samupācareta nāsatpralāpaṃ na ca satyahīnam
Man soll die vorzügliche Familiendharma, wie sie durch die Region (örtliche Überlieferung) gelehrt ist, nicht aufgeben, ebenso wenig die Dharma des eigenen Gotra. Durch das Festhalten daran erlangt man Erfolg in den Zielen. Man soll weder falsches oder unziemliches Geschwätz treiben noch in einer Weise sprechen, der die Wahrheit fehlt.
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FAQs
Ethics here is continuity-based: one’s duties are not self-invented but received through family, clan, and region, and are to be upheld with truthful speech. The verse also ties moral discipline to practical flourishing (artha-siddhi), suggesting that integrity is socially and instrumentally stabilizing.
This is didactic ācāra material—normative guidance that Purāṇas embed alongside the five hallmark topics. It supports ‘vaṃśa/vaṃśānucarita’ sections by preserving lineage identity (kula/gotra) and the ethical code that sustains it.
‘Deśa–kula–gotra’ forms a threefold matrix of identity (place, family, lineage). Truthful speech is presented as the binding force that keeps this matrix coherent; abandoning it leads to social and spiritual dislocation.