Shloka 22
मरीचिमिश्रैर् दक्षेण तथैवान्यैर् अनन्ततः धर्मः प्राप्तस् तथैवान्यैर् अर्थः कामस् तथापरैः
marīcimiśrair dakṣeṇa tathaivānyair anantataḥ dharmaḥ prāptas tathaivānyair arthaḥ kāmas tathāparaiḥ
Through Marīci and the sages of his line, through Dakṣa, and through countless others, Dharma was obtained and established; by other lineages Artha was secured, and by yet others Kāma was regulated—thus, in endless variety, the aims of life were set within the world’s unfolding.
Sage Parāśara (teaching Maitreya)
Concept: Dharma, artha, and kāma are established in the world through diverse lineages and exemplars, indicating that social order is sustained by transmitted norms and role-models.
Vedantic Theme: Dharma
Application: Seek mentors and communities that embody dharma; regulate prosperity and pleasure through ethical frameworks rather than impulse.
Vishishtadvaita: Worldly aims are not rejected but integrated under dharma, preparing the self for God-oriented life; the cosmos is a meaningful moral order under the Lord’s governance.
FAQs
The verse presents the Purusharthas as structured outcomes of creation—Dharma as moral order, Artha as worldly stability and prosperity, and Kāma as desire placed within an ordained framework—distributed through various progenitors.
He describes order arising through multiple creators and lineages (Marīci, Dakṣa, and others), indicating that cosmic functions and human aims are instituted through many agents within the larger design of creation.
Even when not named in the verse, the Vishnu Purana’s frame treats such ordering of Dharma, Artha, and Kāma as occurring within Vishnu’s sovereign cosmic structure—creation’s plurality operates under a single supreme ground of reality.