Shloka 38
अरुन्धत्युवाच श्वश्वापवादं मदतु भर्तुर्भवतु दुर्मना: । एका स्वादु समश्नातु या ते हरति पुष्करम्,अरुन्धती बोलीं--जिस स्त्रीने आपका कमल लिया हो, वह अपने सासकी निन्दा करे, पतिके लिये अपने मनमें दुर्भावना रखे और अकेली ही स्वादिष्ट भोजन किया करे, अर्थात् इन सब पापोंकी फलभागिनी बने
arundhaty uvāca śvaśrūpavādaṁ madatu bhartuḥ bhavatu durmanāḥ | ekā svādu samaśnātu yā te harati puṣkaram ||
Arundhatī said: “May the woman who has taken your lotus become one who speaks ill of her mother-in-law, who harbors ill-will toward her husband, and who eats tasty food all by herself—thus becoming the bearer of the fruits of these sins.”
गालव उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse frames certain household violations—slandering elders (mother-in-law), maintaining hostility toward one’s spouse, and selfish consumption (eating alone)—as ethically blameworthy acts that generate negative karmic results. It uses an imprecatory form to mark these behaviors as adharma within the domestic sphere.
Arundhatī utters a pointed imprecation: the woman who has taken the addressed person’s ‘lotus’ is wished to fall into specific domestic sins and thereby reap their consequences. The speech functions as moral censure expressed through a curse-like benediction.