Shloka 3
Dharma-sāra: Dāna-mahātmyam, Karma-vāda, and the Conquest of Grief and Greed
कर्मदाराः कर्मलोकाः कर्मसम्बन्धिबान्धवाः / कर्माणि प्रेरयन्तीह पुरुषं सुखदुः खयोः
karmadārāḥ karmalokāḥ karmasambandhibāndhavāḥ / karmāṇi prerayantīha puruṣaṃ sukhaduḥ khayoḥ
One’s deeds become one’s spouse and companions; deeds become one’s world and one’s relatives bound by karma. Here itself, it is karma that impels a person toward happiness and toward suffering.
Lord Vishnu (speaking to Garuda/Vainateya)
Afterlife Stage: Yamaloka Journey
Concept: Karma is one’s true companion—spouse, kin, and world—driving experiences of happiness and suffering.
Vedantic Theme: Karma-phala-niyati and saṃsāra: the jīva’s experiences arise from its own actions; encourages viveka and ethical agency.
Application: Audit actions daily; prioritize sattvic conduct, truthfulness, non-harm, and generosity; treat choices as shaping one’s ‘company’ and destiny.
Primary Rasa: shanta
Secondary Rasa: bhayanaka
Related Themes: Garuda Purana Pretakalpa: repeated motif that only karma follows the soul after death (thematic internal parallel)
FAQs
This verse states that karma alone becomes one’s real companion, world, and kin—determining the experiences of pleasure and pain that follow a person.
By declaring karma as one’s ‘world’ and ‘relations,’ it implies the departed cannot rely on earthly ties; the soul’s post-death condition is shaped primarily by accumulated deeds.
Live with ethical restraint and compassion, since actions—not social status or relatives—become the lasting force that produces future happiness or suffering.