Shloka 74

मायामोह-प्रवर्तन, वेदमार्ग-बहिष्कार, तथा पाषण्ड-संसर्ग-दोषः

Māyāmoha’s Delusion, Rejection of the Vedic Path, and the Fault of Heretical Association

Devanagari script

तत्रापि दृष्ट्वा तं प्राह शार्गालीं योनिम् आगतम् भर्तारम् अपि चार्वङ्गी तनया पृथिवीक्षितः

Transliteration

tatrāpi dṛṣṭvā taṃ prāha śārgālīṃ yonim āgatam bhartāram api cārvaṅgī tanayā pṛthivīkṣitaḥ

Translation

There too, on seeing him, Cārvaṅgī, the king’s daughter, spoke to her own husband, who had come to be in the womb-form of a jackal.

Word by Word

• तत्र: there
• तत्र: Adhikarana (अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; देशवाचक क्रियाविशेषण (locative adverb: there)

• अपि: also
• अपि: Sambandha/Discourse particle
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अपि (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (particle); also/even

• दृष्ट्वा: having seen
• दृष्ट्वा: Purvakala-kriya (पूर्वकालक्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: दृश् (धातु) + त्वा (क्त्वा)
• Form: क्त्वान्त अव्ययकृदन्त (gerund)

• तम्: him
• तम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• प्राह: said
• प्राह: Kriya (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: प्र-आह्/अह् (धातु: ब्रू-अर्थे; आह इति लिट्-रूपम्)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• शार्गालीम्: jackal-like (female jackal)
• शार्गालीम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: शार्गाली (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; योनिम् इति विशेषण

• योनिम्: womb/birth/state of existence
• योनिम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: योनि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन

• आगतम्: come/arrived
• आगतम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: आ-गम् (धातु) + क्त (कृदन्त)
• Form: भूतकर्मणि कृदन्त (past passive participle, क्त); पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; भर्तारम् इति विशेषण

• भर्तारम्: husband
• भर्तारम्: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भर्तृ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन

• अपि: also
• अपि: Sambandha/Discourse particle
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अपि (अव्यय)
• Form: निपात (particle); also/even

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चयबोधक अव्यय (conjunction)

• अर्वङ्गी: Arvaṅgī (name)
• अर्वङ्गी: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अर्वङ्गी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; व्यक्तिनाम (proper name)

• तनया: daughter
• तनया: Karta (कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तनया (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; अप्पोजिशन (apposition)

• पृथिवीक्षितः: of the king (protector of the earth)
• पृथिवीक्षितः: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पृथिवी + क्षित् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: षष्ठी-तत्पुरुष (genitive tatpurusha): पृथिव्याः क्षित् = पृथिवीक्षित्; पुंलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th/Genitive), एकवचन

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (narrating to Maitreya)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Teaching: Historical

Quality: revealing

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Worldly status is fragile; karma can invert human dignity into animal embodiment, yet relational memory can become the doorway back to dharma.

Vedantic Theme: Dharma

Application: Treat power and prestige as temporary; cultivate humility and ethical discernment so that one’s choices do not degrade character and destiny.

Vishishtadvaita: Embodied selves (cit) undergo real, karma-governed states within the Lord’s order; the moral universe is purposeful, not illusory.

Characters & Entities

• Cārvaṅgī
• A king (pṛthivīkṣit)

FAQs

What is the significance of yoni (birth-form) in the Vishnu Purana?

This verse uses yoni to show karmic consequence: a person may take a non-human birth, reinforcing that moral order governs embodied existence.

How does Sage Parāśara explain karma through genealogical stories?

By embedding rebirth and transformation episodes within royal lineages, Parāśara illustrates that dharma and adharma shape destiny even across lives and species.

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

Even when Vishnu is not named in the verse, the narrative assumes a cosmos ruled by divine order (dharma-niyati), where karmic justice operates under the Supreme Sovereignty upheld by Vishnu.