Shloka 26

पुंसां क्रिया-विभागः, संस्काराः, नामकरणम्, विवाहविधानम्

Devanagari script

सधर्मचारिणीं प्राप्य गार्हस्थ्यं सहितस् तया समुद्वहेद् ददात्य् एतत् सम्यगूढं महाफलम्

Transliteration

sadharmacāriṇīṃ prāpya gārhasthyaṃ sahitas tayā samudvahed dadāty etat samyagūḍhaṃ mahāphalam

Translation

Having obtained a wife who walks with him in dharma, let him, together with her, duly undertake the burdens and rites of the householder’s life. For this—well guarded and rightly practiced—bestows a great and enduring fruit.

Word by Word

• sa-dharma-cāriṇīm: a wife who shares his dharma
• sa-dharma-cāriṇīm: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sa (अव्यय/उपसर्गार्थ) + dharma (प्रातिपदिक) + cāriṇī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुषः (सधर्मचारिणी = सह धर्मेण चरति या)

• prāpya: having obtained
• prāpya: Purvakala (Prior action/पूर्वकाल)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: pra-√āp (आप्) + ल्यप् (ल्यप्)
• Form: क्त्वान्त/ल्यपन्त-अव्ययीभाव-रूप (absolutive/gerund): ‘having obtained’

• gārhasthyam: householder life
• gārhasthyam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: gārhasthya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन

• sahitaḥ: being together (with her)
• sahitaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: sahita (कृदन्त/प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: कृदन्त (क्त), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; ‘युक्तः/समन्वितः’ (accompanied)

• tayā: with her
• tayā: Sahakari (Accompaniment/सहकारि)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd), एकवचन

• sam-udvahet: should marry/enter (household)
• sam-udvahet: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: sam-ud-√vah (वहँ)
• Form: लोट् (imperative), प्रथमपुरुषः (3rd), एकवचन; परस्मैपदम्; ‘should duly marry/lead (life)’

• dadāti: gives
• dadāti: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √dā (दा)
• Form: लट् (present/वर्तमान), प्रथमपुरुषः (3rd), एकवचन; परस्मैपदम्

• etat: this
• etat: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: etad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; ‘mahāphalam’ इत्यस्य विशेषणम्

• samyag-ūḍham: properly performed/solemnized
• samyag-ūḍham: Karma (Object qualifier/कर्मविशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: samyak (अव्यय) + ūḍha (कृदन्त; √vah/√uh?)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; समासः—कर्मधारयः (सम्यगूढ = सम्यक् ऊढम्, ‘properly carried/contracted’, i.e., duly performed/solemnized)

• mahā-phalam: great fruit/result
• mahā-phalam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahā (प्रातिपदिक) + phala (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन; समासः—कर्मधारयः (महच्च तत् फलम्)

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (in instruction to Maitreya)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: Gṛhastha-āśrama as a shared dharma with a sadharmacāriṇī, yielding ‘mahāphala’ when properly protected and practiced

Teaching: Ethical

Quality: compassionate and directive

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: With a spouse aligned in dharma, the gṛhastha life—carefully guarded and rightly practiced—becomes a powerful means to lasting spiritual merit and uplift.

Vedantic Theme: Dharma

Application: Make the home a sādhana-space: shared vows, ethical livelihood, hospitality, and daily worship/service.

Vishishtadvaita: Household duties become kainkarya to Nārāyaṇa: the couple’s coordinated dharma expresses the Lord’s immanence (antaryāmin) guiding righteous life.

Vaishnava Theology

Vishnu Form: Narayana

Bhakti Type: shanta

Lakshmi Presence: Sri

Antaryamin: Yes

Characters & Entities

• Parāśara
• Maitreya
• Sadharmacāriṇī (righteous wife)

FAQs

What is the significance of the sadharmacāriṇī (righteous wife) in the Vishnu Purana?

This verse presents the wife as a co-practitioner of dharma, implying that household duties and sacred rites are ideally undertaken together, strengthening both spiritual merit and social order.

How does Sage Parāśara explain the value of gṛhastha-dharma here?

Parāśara frames household life as a disciplined burden to be carried properly and protected in conduct; when observed rightly, it yields “mahāphala,” a great spiritual and ethical result.

What is the theological importance of Lord Vishnu in this context?

Though Vishnu is not named in the verse, the Vishnu Purana situates dharma as upheld within Vishnu’s cosmic sovereignty—so righteous household life becomes a means of aligning one’s worldly role with the Supreme Order.