Shloka 14

स्वाध्याय-योगोपदेशः तथा केशिध्वज-खाण्डिक्य-उपाख्यानम्

Yoga through Study and Restraint; The Keśidhvaja–Khāṇḍikya Narrative Frame

Devanagari script

ततो राजा हतां ज्ञात्वा धेनुं व्याघ्रेण ऋत्विजः प्रायश्चित्तं स पप्रच्छ किम् अत्रेति विधीयते

Transliteration

tato rājā hatāṃ jñātvā dhenuṃ vyāghreṇa ṛtvijaḥ prāyaścittaṃ sa papraccha kim atreti vidhīyate

Translation

Then the king, learning that the cow had been slain by a tiger, asked the officiating priests about expiation: “What atonement is prescribed here—what should be done in this case?”

Word by Word

• tataḥ: then, thereafter
• tataḥ: Adhikarana (Context/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tatas (अव्यय-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: अव्यय (indeclinable adverb): 'thereupon/then'

• rājā: the king
• rājā: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: rājan (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन

• hatām: killed, slain
• hatām: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: han (धातु) → hata (कृदन्त, क्त-प्रत्यय)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त भूतकर्मणि विशेषण (past passive participle)

• jñātvā: having known
• jñātvā: Kriya-viseshana (Adverbial/क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: jñā (धातु) → jñātvā (क्त्वान्त अव्यय)
• Form: क्त्वान्त अव्यय (gerund): 'having known'

• dhenum: the cow
• dhenum: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: dhenu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन

• vyāghreṇa: by a tiger
• vyāghreṇa: Karana (Instrument/करण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vyāghra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, तृतीया (3rd/Instrumental), एकवचन

• ṛtvijaḥ: the priests
• ṛtvijaḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ṛtvij (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), बहुवचन

• prāyaścittam: expiation, penance
• prāyaścittam: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: prāyaścitta (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन

• saḥ: he
• saḥ: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st/Nominative), एकवचन; सर्वनाम

• papraccha: asked
• papraccha: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: prach (धातु)
• Form: लिट् (Perfect), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; परस्मैपद

• kim: what
• kim: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kim (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd/Accusative), एकवचन; प्रश्नवाचक सर्वनाम

• atra: here, in this case
• atra: Adhikarana (Locus/अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: atra (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (indeclinable adverb): 'here/in this matter'

• iti: thus
• iti: Sambandha (Quotation marker/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: iti (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; इति-उक्त्यर्थक (quotative particle)

• vidhīyate: is prescribed, is to be done
• vidhīyate: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vidhā (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथमपुरुष (3rd person), एकवचन; आत्मनेपद; कर्मणि प्रयोग (passive)

Speaker

Sage Parāśara (narrating to Maitreya)

Parashara-Maitreya Dialogue

Speaker: Parasara

Topic: Prāyaścitta for a cow slain by a tiger and the proper dharmic procedure in a sacrificial context.

Teaching: Ethical

Quality: authoritative

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Even unintended harm (here, the loss of a cow) requires seeking proper expiation to preserve dharma and ritual integrity.

Vedantic Theme: Dharma

Application: When harm occurs without intent, consult competent guidance, accept responsibility, and undertake a corrective act rather than rationalizing it away.

Vishishtadvaita: Dharma is upheld as service to the Lord’s order (niyati), where ethical action aligns the self within the divinely governed cosmos.

Dynasty & Genealogy

Dharma Exemplar: Dharma (scrupulous atonement for ritual/ethical purity)

Characters & Entities

• King
• Cow (Dhenu)
• Tiger (Vyāghra)
• Rtvijas (priests)

FAQs

What is the significance of prāyaścitta (atonement) in this Vishnu Purana verse?

It shows the king treating even an unintended or indirect loss (a cow killed by a tiger) as a disruption of dharma that must be ritually and ethically repaired through prescribed expiation.

How does Sage Parāśara frame royal responsibility in this context?

By depicting the king immediately consulting the ṛtvijas, Parāśara presents kingship as accountable to dharma—sovereignty functions to restore sacred order, not merely to exercise power.

What is the theological importance of Lord Vishnu here, even though not named in the verse?

In the Vishnu Purana’s worldview, dharma and its restoration are ultimately grounded in Vishnu as the sustaining Supreme Reality; acts of expiation align society back to the cosmic order that Vishnu upholds.