Markandeya Purana — Adhyaya 26, Shloka 1

Adhyaya 26 — Madālasa Names Alarka and Reorients Him Toward Kshatriya Duty

Sanskrit

इति श्रीमार्कण्डेयपुराणे मदालसोपाख्याने पञ्चविंशोऽध्यायः ।

षड्विंशोऽध्यायः ।

जड उवाच

वर्धमानं सुतं सा तु राजपत्नी दिने दिने ।

तमुल्लापादिना बोधमनयन्निर्ममात्मकम् ॥

Transliteration

iti śrīmārkaṇḍeyapurāṇe madālasopākhyāne pañcaviṃśo 'dhyāyaḥ / ṣaḍviṃśo 'dhyāyaḥ / jaḍa uvāca / vardhamānaṃ sutaṃ sā tu rājapatnī dine dine / tam ullāpādinā bodham anayann irmamātmakam

Translation

Thus ends the twenty-fifth chapter in the Madālasā episode of the Śrī Mārkaṇḍeya Purāṇa. Chapter twenty-six begins. Jaḍa said: Day by day, as her son grew, that queen led him to understanding through lullabies and the like, shaping him with a non-possessive, unattached disposition.

Word by Word

• iti: thus
• iti: Sambandha (सम्बन्धः/quotative marker)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: iti (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya (अव्यय), quotative particle (इति-प्रयोगः)

• śrīmārkaṇḍeyapurāṇe: in the Śrī Mārkaṇḍeya Purāṇa
• śrīmārkaṇḍeyapurāṇe: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण/locative)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śrī + mārkaṇḍeya + purāṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Locative (7th/सप्तमी), Singular (एकवचन); समासः—तत्पुरुषः (श्री-मārkaṇḍeya-पुराण)

• madālasā-upākhyāne: in the episode (upākhyāna) of Madālasā
• madālasā-upākhyāne: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण/locative)
• Type: Noun
• Root: madālasā + upākhyāna (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Locative (7th/सप्तमी), Singular; समासः—तत्पुरुषः (मदालसा-उपाख्यान)

• pañcaviṃśaḥ: twenty-fifth
• pañcaviṃśaḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: pañcaviṃśa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular; ordinal adjective used with 'adhyāyaḥ' (understood)

• adhyāyaḥ: chapter
• adhyāyaḥ: Karta (कर्ता/subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: adhyāya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative (1st), Singular

• ṣaḍviṃśaḥ: twenty-sixth
• ṣaḍviṃśaḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: ṣaḍviṃśa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative (1st), Singular; ordinal adjective used with 'adhyāyaḥ' (understood)

• adhyāyaḥ: chapter
• adhyāyaḥ: Karta (कर्ता/subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: adhyāya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative (1st), Singular

• jaḍaḥ: Jaḍa (proper name)
• jaḍaḥ: Karta (कर्ता/subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: jaḍa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative (1st), Singular; speaker tag

• uvāca: said
• uvāca: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vac (धातु)
• Form: Perfect (लिट्), 3rd person (प्रथमपुरुष), Singular (एकवचन); parasmaipada

• vardhamānam: growing
• vardhamānam: Karma (कर्म/object qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: vardhamāna (कृदन्त; वर्ध् धातु)
• Form: Present participle (शतृ), Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular; Masculine/Neuter form agreeing with 'sutam'

• sutam: son
• sutam: Karma (कर्म/object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: suta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Accusative (2nd), Singular

• sā: she
• sā: Karta (कर्ता/subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine, Nominative (1st), Singular; pronoun

• tu: indeed/and
• tu: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/particle)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tu (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya; particle (निपात), contrast/emphasis

• rājapatnī: the king’s wife (queen)
• rājapatnī: Karta (कर्ता/apposition)
• Type: Noun
• Root: rājan + patnī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine, Nominative (1st), Singular; समासः—तत्पुरुषः (राज्ञः पत्नी)

• dine: by day / each day
• dine: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण/time)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dina (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Locative (7th), Singular; used adverbially

• dine: day after day
• dine: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण/time)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dina (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Locative (7th), Singular; repetition for distributive sense

• tam: him
• tam: Karma (कर्म/object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Accusative (2nd), Singular; pronoun referring to the son

• ullāpa-ādinā: by lullabies and the like
• ullāpa-ādinā: Karaṇa (करण/instrument)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ullāpa + ādi (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine/Neuter, Instrumental (3rd/तृतीया), Singular; समासः—तत्पुरुषः (उल्लापः आदिः यस्य/उल्लापादि)

• bodham: understanding/awakening
• bodham: Karma (कर्म/object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bodha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Accusative (2nd), Singular

• anayat: brought/led (him) to
• anayat: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: nī (धातु)
• Form: Imperfect (लङ्), 3rd person, Singular; parasmaipada; causative sense not marked here (simple 'led/brought')

• nirmama-ātmakam: of the nature of non-attachment
• nirmama-ātmakam: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: nirmama + ātmaka (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Accusative (2nd), Singular; समासः—कर्मधारयः (निर्ममः आत्मकः) agreeing with 'bodham' (bodhaṃ nirmamātmakam)

Speakers

• Jaḍa (narrator within the episode) describing Madālasā

Verse Rasa

{ "primaryRasa": "shanta", "secondaryRasa": "vatsalya", "rasaIntensity": 0, "emotionalArcPosition": "", "moodDescriptors": [] }

Key Themes

• Upākhyāna frame
• Spiritual education
• Non-attachment training

FAQs

What is the philosophical or ethical takeaway?

The text presents deliberate early formation of dispassion: spiritual instruction is integrated into daily nurturing, not postponed to later life.

How does this fit the Pancalakshana (5 characteristics)?

Primarily narrative (vaṃśānucarita-adjacent in royal context) serving as a vehicle for adhyātma instruction rather than a strict pancalakṣaṇa exposition.

What is the esoteric significance?

The ‘lullaby’ becomes mantra-like conditioning: repeated teaching reshapes saṃskāras toward nirmamatā (non-appropriation).