Narada Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 85

Mokṣopāya: Bhakti-rooted Jñāna and the Aṣṭāṅga Yoga of Viṣṇu-Meditation

Devanagari script

धनाद्यैरधिकं दृष्ट्वा भृशं मनसि तापनम् । असूया कीर्तिता सद्भिस्तत्त्यागो ह्यनसूयता ॥ ८५ ॥

Transliteration

dhanādyairadhikaṃ dṛṣṭvā bhṛśaṃ manasi tāpanam | asūyā kīrtitā sadbhistattyāgo hyanasūyatā || 85 ||

Translation

When one sees another surpassing oneself in wealth and the like, and the mind burns intensely, the good call that state asūyā (envy). The abandonment of that is indeed anasūyatā (freedom from envy).

Word by Word

• dhana-ādyaiḥ: by wealth and the like
• dhana-ādyaiḥ: Karaṇa (करण) / Nimitta (निमित्त)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dhana (प्रातिपदिक) + ādi (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Instrumental (3rd/तृतीया) Plural; Tatpuruṣa: ‘dhanaṃ ādiḥ yeṣām’ in sense ‘wealth etc.’ (elliptic list-compound)

• adhikam: superior/more
• adhikam: Karma (कर्म) of ‘dṛṣṭvā’
• Type: Adjective
• Root: adhika (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया) Singular; used predicatively with implied ‘(someone) superior’

• dṛṣṭvā: having seen
• dṛṣṭvā: Pūrvakāla-kriyā (पूर्वकालक्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √dṛś (धातु) + ktvā (क्त्वा)
• Form: Absolutive/Gerund (क्त्वान्त), ‘having seen’

• bhṛśam: greatly
• bhṛśam: Kriyā-viśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: bhṛśam (अव्यय)
• Form: Adverb (क्रियाविशेषण) ‘excessively/greatly’

• manasi: in the mind
• manasi: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: manas (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Locative (7th/सप्तमी) Singular

• tāpanam: torment/burning
• tāpanam: Karta (कर्ता) / Lakṣya-nirdeśa (लक्षणनिर्देश)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tāpana (प्रातिपदिक; from √tap)
• Form: Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Nominative (1st/प्रथमा) Singular; abstract ‘burning/torment’

• asūyā: envy
• asūyā: Pratijñā/Predicate (विधेय)
• Type: Noun
• Root: asūyā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine (स्त्रीलिङ्ग), Nominative (1st/प्रथमा) Singular

• kīrtitā: is declared/called
• kīrtitā: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √kīrt (धातु) + kta (कृत् प्रत्यय)
• Form: Past passive participle (क्त-कृदन्त), Feminine Nominative Singular; agrees with ‘asūyā’

• sadbhiḥ: by the good (people)
• sadbhiḥ: Karta (कर्ता) in passive sense / Agent (कर्तृ)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sat (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Instrumental (3rd/तृतीया) Plural; ‘good people’

• tat-tyāgaḥ: abandoning that
• tat-tyāgaḥ: Karta (कर्ता) / Viśeṣya-nirdeśa (विशेष्यनिर्देश)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tat (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक) + tyāga (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Nominative (1st/प्रथमा) Singular; Tatpuruṣa (षष्ठी): ‘tasya tyāgaḥ’

• hi: indeed
• hi: Sambandha-bodhaka (सम्बन्धबोधक)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: hi (अव्यय)
• Form: Particle (निपात) ‘indeed/for’

• anasūyatā: non-envy
• anasūyatā: Pratijñā/Predicate (विधेय)
• Type: Noun
• Root: an-asūyatā (प्रातिपदिक; a- negation + asūyatā)
• Form: Feminine (स्त्रीलिङ्ग), Nominative (1st/प्रथमा) Singular; abstract ‘non-enviousness’

Speaker

Sanatkumara (teaching Narada in a didactic sequence of virtues and faults)

Vrata Kalpa

Vrata: none

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: shanta

Secondary Rasa: raudra

Characters & Entities

• Narada
• Sanatkumara

FAQs

What is the spiritual significance of this verse in Narada Purana?

It precisely defines envy as inner burning on seeing others’ superior fortune, and teaches that spiritual refinement begins by abandoning this mental torment—supporting purity of heart needed for Dharma and liberation.

How does this verse explain the path of devotion (Bhakti)?

Bhakti requires a heart free from resentment and comparison; by renouncing asūyā and cultivating anasūyatā, the devotee becomes fit for sincere praise and remembrance of the Lord without fault-finding toward others.

What practical Vedic knowledge (Vedanga) is highlighted here?

No specific Vedanga (like Vyākaraṇa or Jyotiṣa) is taught in this verse; it is a practical Dharma-śikṣā point—mental discipline and ethical self-correction as part of sadācāra.