Shloka 159
Ācāra-Nirṇaya: Varṇa-Āśrama Dharma, Śauca, Snāna, Sandhyā, Japa, Tarpaṇa, and Gṛhastha-Dinacaryā
एतद्वा दिवसे प्रोक्तमनुष्ठानं मया द्विज / आचारं यः पठेद्विद्वाञ्छृणुयात्स दिवंव्रजेत् / आचारादिर्धर्मकर्ता केशवो हि स्मृतो द्विज
etadvā divase proktamanuṣṭhānaṃ mayā dvija / ācāraṃ yaḥ paṭhedvidvāñchṛṇuyātsa divaṃvrajet / ācārādirdharmakartā keśavo hi smṛto dvija
O twice-born one, this daily discipline has been taught by me. The learned person who recites this teaching on ācāra (right conduct), or who listens to it, goes to heaven. For Keśava (Viṣṇu), O twice-born, is remembered as the very origin of right conduct and the establisher of Dharma.
Lord Vishnu (Keśava) speaking to Garuda (Vinata-putra), addressing the 'dvija' as part of the instruction
Concept: Śravaṇa/pāṭha of ācāra itself is meritorious; dharma is rooted in Keśava, who establishes right conduct.
Vedantic Theme: Īśvara as dharma-yonī; devotion expressed through obedience to dharmic order; śravaṇa as purifier and merit-generator.
Application: Regularly read/listen to dharma/ācāra teachings; treat ethical discipline as a form of Viṣṇu-sevā; connect daily conduct to remembrance of Keśava.
Primary Rasa: shanta
Secondary Rasa: adbhuta
Type: teaching setting (guru-disciple discourse)
Related Themes: Garuda Purana 1.213 (conclusion of dinacaryā/ācāra section)
FAQs
This verse presents ācāra as a daily spiritual discipline whose recitation or hearing yields merit leading to heaven, and it grounds ācāra in Viṣṇu as the source of Dharma.
It links ethical and ritual discipline (anuṣṭhāna and ācāra) with a favorable post-death destination—svarga—implying that sustained dharmic living shapes the soul’s trajectory.
Maintain consistent daily dharmic practice—study/recitation, listening to sacred teachings, and living by right conduct—treating Dharma as devotion to Viṣṇu’s order rather than mere social custom.