Shloka 22

Devanagari script

ततः स्ववर्णधर्मा ये विप्रादीनाम् उदाहृताः तान् कुर्वीत पुमाञ् जीवेन् निजधर्मार्जनैस् तथा

Transliteration

tataḥ svavarṇadharmā ye viprādīnām udāhṛtāḥ tān kurvīta pumāñ jīven nijadharmārjanais tathā

Translation

Therefore, whatever duties have been declared for one’s own social order—beginning with those of the brāhmaṇas—let a person perform them with faithful resolve; and let him sustain his life as well by livelihoods that arise from his own dharma.

Word by Word

• ततः: thereafter
• ततः: Kriya-vishesana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ततः (अव्यय/तद्-तसिल्)
• Form: अव्यय; ‘thereafter’

• स्व-वर्ण-धर्माः: the duties of one’s own varṇa
• स्व-वर्ण-धर्माः: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: स्व (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक) + वर्ण (प्रातिपदिक) + धर्म (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुषः (षष्ठी/सम्बन्ध) ‘स्वस्य वर्णस्य धर्माः’

• ये: which/that (those)
• ये: Karta (Relative subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; सम्बन्धसूचक सर्वनाम

• विप्र-आदीनाम्: of Brahmins and others
• विप्र-आदीनाम्: Sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: विप्र (प्रातिपदिक) + आदि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/सम्बन्ध), बहुवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुषः ‘विप्रादयः’ (ब्राह्मणादयः)

• उदाहृताः: have been declared
• उदाहृताः: Kriya (Predicate/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: उद्-आ-हृ (धातु)
• Form: कृदन्त; भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (क्त); पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, बहुवचन; कर्मणि ‘have been stated/declared’

• तान्: those (duties)
• तान्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/कर्म), बहुवचन

• कुर्वीत: should perform
• कुर्वीत: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: कृ (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), आत्मनेपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; ‘should do/perform’

• पुमान्: a man
• पुमान्: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पुमांस् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा, एकवचन

• जीवेत्: should live
• जीवेत्: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: जीव् (धातु)
• Form: विधिलिङ् (Optative), परस्मैपद, प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; ‘should live’

• निज-धर्म-अर्जनैः: by earnings gained through one’s own duty
• निज-धर्म-अर्जनैः: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: निज (प्रातिपदिक) + धर्म (प्रातिपदिक) + अर्जन (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/करण), बहुवचन; समासः—तत्पुरुषः ‘निजधर्मस्य अर्जनम्’ (धर्मानुसार-उपार्जनम्)

• तथा: thus/likewise
• तथा: Kriya-vishesana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तथा (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; क्रियाविशेषण ‘thus/in that manner/also’

Speaker

Sage Parāśara

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: Normative varṇadharma and proper livelihood (ājīvikā) consistent with one’s station

Teaching: Ethical

Quality: authoritative

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: One should live by faithfully performing the duties of one’s own varṇa and sustaining oneself through livelihood that arises from that dharma.

Vedantic Theme: Dharma

Application: Align work, income, and daily conduct with conscience, competence, and responsibility; avoid means that violate ethical commitments.

Vishishtadvaita: Varṇāśrama-dharma is treated as a mode of service to the Supreme (śeṣatva), integrating worldly life with God-oriented order.

Vaishnava Theology

Vishnu Form: Para-Brahman

Bhakti Type: shanta

Characters & Entities

• Brāhmaṇas (Vipra)
• Varṇas (social orders)

FAQs

What is the significance of svadharma (one’s own duty) in this Vishnu Purana verse?

It teaches that spiritual and social harmony is maintained when each person performs the duties prescribed for their station, without abandoning them for incompatible roles.

How does Sage Parāśara explain right livelihood here?

He links livelihood to dharma itself: one should live by forms of earning that are appropriate to one’s own prescribed duties, rather than by unrighteous or mismatched means.

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

Even when Vishnu is not named, the verse reflects Vaishnava order: dharma is part of the cosmic governance upheld by the Supreme Reality (Vishnu), and living by dharma aligns life with that sustaining principle.