Shloka 28
सदाचार-नियमाः: शील, संयम, संग-निषेध, शुचिता, वाणी-नीति, परोपकारः
तिष्ठन् न मूत्रयेत् तद्वत् पन्थानं नावमूत्रयेत् श्लेष्मविण्मूत्ररक्तानि सर्वदैव न लङ्घयेत्
tiṣṭhan na mūtrayet tadvat panthānaṃ nāvamūtrayet śleṣmaviṇmūtraraktāni sarvadaiva na laṅghayet
One should not urinate while standing; nor should one ever urinate upon a roadway. And one should never step over mucus, feces, urine, or blood.
Sage Parāśara (in instruction to Maitreya)
Speaker: Parasara
Topic: Everyday śauca: bodily discipline and public cleanliness
Teaching: Ethical
Quality: practical and prescriptive
Concept: Purity is upheld by disciplined bodily conduct and by not defiling common spaces or transgressing over impure substances.
Vedantic Theme: Dharma
Application: Practice hygienic, considerate behavior in public/shared spaces; cultivate mindfulness about what one touches, steps over, and leaves behind.
Vishishtadvaita: Ethical purity is a form of kainkarya (service) to the Lord’s world and to other beings who dwell within His order.
Bhakti Type: Dasya
FAQs
This verse treats purity as a practical form of dharma: personal habits and public cleanliness preserve social order, reflecting the broader cosmic order upheld under Vishnu.
Parāśara gives concrete prohibitions—do not urinate standing, do not defile roads, and do not step over impure substances—showing that dharma includes disciplined bodily behavior and respect for shared spaces.
Even when the verse is about hygiene and etiquette, it implies that dharma is not merely social convention but participation in an ordered reality ultimately grounded in Vishnu as the supreme sustainer.