Shloka 30

Umā–Maheśvara-saṃvāda: Varṇa-bhraṃśa, Ācāra (Vṛtta), and Karmic Ascent/Decline

Devanagari script

दिवं स्पृशत्यशब्दो<स्य त्रस्यन्ति पितरश्न॒ वै

Transliteration

divaṃ spṛśaty aśabdo 'sya trasyanti pitaraś ca vai | devāś ca tasya vairasya bhāginaḥ syur mahāmate | na cāsya dīptaḥ pāvako gṛhṇīyād haviṣo 'rpitam ||

Translation

Dharma said: “The ill repute of such a person rises up to heaven. His ancestors become alarmed, and even the gods turn strongly hostile toward him. The blazing Fire, though mighty, does not accept the oblation that he offers.”

Word by Word

• दिवम्: heaven
• दिवम्: Karma
• Type: Noun
• Root: दिव्
• Form: Feminine, Accusative, Singular

• स्पृशति: touches/reaches
• Type: Verb
• Root: स्पृश्
• Form: Present, Third, Singular, Parasmaipada

• अशब्दः: ill-fame, bad report
• अशब्दः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: अशब्द
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• अस्य: of him
• Type: Pronoun
• Root: इदम्
• Form: Masculine/Neuter, Genitive, Singular

• त्रस्यन्ति: tremble, are afraid
• Type: Verb
• Root: त्रस्
• Form: Present, Third, Plural, Parasmaipada

• पितरः: the ancestors (pitṛs)
• पितरः: Karta
• Type: Noun
• Root: पितृ
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Plural

• नु: indeed/now (emphatic particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: नु

• वै: indeed, certainly
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: वै

Speaker

धर्म उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Dharma
• Pitṛs (ancestors)
• Devas (gods)
• Pāvaka/Agni (Fire)
• Havis (oblation)

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Unethical conduct brings far-reaching consequences: one’s disgrace affects not only oneself but also one’s ancestors and standing among the gods; even ritual acts lose efficacy when the doer is morally tainted.

What is happening in the narrative?

Dharma is warning about the spiritual and social fallout of a person’s wrongdoing: his bad reputation spreads upward, the Pitṛs are distressed, the gods become antagonistic, and Agni refuses to receive his sacrificial offering.