Shloka 120

गृहस्थस्य सदाचारः: शौच, तर্পण, वैश्वदेव, अतिथिधर्म, भोजन-विधि, संध्योपासन, ऋतु-धर्मः

Devanagari script

नान्ययोनाव् अयोनौ वा नोपयुक्तौषधस् तथा देवद्विजगुरूणां च व्यवायी नाश्रये भवेत्

Transliteration

nānyayonāv ayonau vā nopayuktauṣadhas tathā devadvijagurūṇāṃ ca vyavāyī nāśraye bhavet

Translation

One should not resort to sexual union in an improper womb, nor in an unwombed manner; nor should one employ medicines that have not been duly prescribed or properly applied. Likewise, one must never seek sexual intercourse with those who are divine, with the twice-born, or with one’s teacher—such conduct is not to be taken as a refuge.

Word by Word

• न: not
• न: Sambandha (Negation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेधार्थक-अव्यय (negation)

• अन्ययोनौ: in another’s wife/another womb (illicit partner)
• अन्ययोनौ: Adhikarana (Locus/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अन्य (प्रातिपदिक) + योनि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th case), एकवचन; अन्य-योनि (determinative)

• अयोनौ: in an improper/unnatural place (non-vaginal)
• अयोनौ: Adhikarana (Locus/अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अ (नञ्) + योनि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, सप्तमी (7th case), एकवचन; नञ्-तत्पुरुष (अ-योनि)

• वा: or
• वा: Sambandha (Alternative/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: वा (अव्यय)
• Form: विकल्पार्थक-अव्यय (disjunctive particle)

• न: not
• न: Sambandha (Negation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेधार्थक-अव्यय (negation)

• उपयुक्तौषधः: a medicine that has been used/applied (aphrodisiac etc.)
• उपयुक्तौषधः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: उपयुक्त (कृदन्त; √युज् धातु) + औषध (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st case), एकवचन; कर्मधारयः (उपयुक्तम् औषधम्)

• तथा: likewise/also
• तथा: Sambandha (Manner/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तथा (अव्यय)
• Form: प्रकारार्थक-अव्यय (adverb: ‘thus/likewise’)

• देवद्विजगुरूणाम्: of gods, Brahmins, and gurus
• देवद्विजगुरूणाम्: Sambandha (Genitive relation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: देव (प्रातिपदिक) + द्विज (प्रातिपदिक) + गुरु (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th case), बहुवचन; इतरेतर-द्वन्द्वः (देवाः च द्विजाः च गुरवः च)

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयबोधक-निपात (conjunction/particle)

• व्यवायी: one who engages in sexual intercourse
• व्यवायी: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: व्यवायिन् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st case), एकवचन

• न: not
• न: Sambandha (Negation/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेधार्थक-अव्यय (negation)

• आश्रये: resorts to/approaches
• आश्रये: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: आ-श्रि (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), आत्मनेपद, प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; न-आश्रये (निषेध)

• भवेत्: should be/should become
• भवेत्: Kriya (Injunction/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: भू (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (teaching Maitreya)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: Ethical prohibitions regarding sexual conduct and improper medical usage within dharma.

Teaching: Ethical

Quality: authoritative, prohibitive

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Dharma requires strict boundaries in sexual conduct and the careful, proper use of medicines; one must not violate protected persons (deva, dvija, guru).

Vedantic Theme: Dharma

Application: Adopt consent-and-duty based ethics: avoid exploitative or forbidden relationships; treat health interventions responsibly under qualified guidance.

Vishishtadvaita: The body is a śeṣa (dependent instrument) meant for service; disciplined conduct safeguards the embodied self’s capacity for bhakti and śāstric life.

Characters & Entities

• Devas
• Dvijas (twice-born)
• Guru (teacher)

FAQs

What is the significance of regulating sexual conduct in the Vishnu Purana?

This verse frames sexual restraint as part of dharma that preserves social order and spiritual purity, discouraging illicit, exploitative, or transgressive unions.

How does Sage Parāśara explain moral boundaries for a householder here?

Parāśara lists specific prohibitions—improper unions, unnatural acts, misuse of remedies, and intercourse with protected categories (devas, dvijas, guru)—to show that desire must remain governed by dharma.

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

Even when Vishnu is not named in the verse, the Purana’s dharma-teachings rest on Vishnu as the supreme sustaining reality; ethical restraint is presented as aligning personal life with the cosmic order upheld by him.