Narada Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 85
Pāpa-bheda, Naraka-yātanā, Mahāpātaka-vicāra, Atonement Limits, Daśa-vidhā Bhakti, and Gaṅgā as Final Remedy
प्रतिग्रहरता ये च ये वै नक्षत्रपाठकाः । ये च देवलकान्नानां भोजिनस्ताञ्श्रृणुष्व मे ॥ ८५ ॥
pratigraharatā ye ca ye vai nakṣatrapāṭhakāḥ | ye ca devalakānnānāṃ bhojinastāñśrṛṇuṣva me || 85 ||
Escucha de mí acerca de quienes se entregan a aceptar dádivas, de quienes se ganan la vida recitando la ciencia de las estrellas, y de quienes comen el alimento de los servidores del templo (devalakas).
Sanatkumara (teaching Narada in a dharma-instruction context)
Vrata: none
Primary Rasa: bhayanaka
Secondary Rasa: shanta
FAQs
The verse warns that spiritual life is weakened by dependency-driven conduct—especially compulsive gift-taking, profession-based “star-reading,” and consuming food tied to compromised religious service—because these can entangle one in greed, social obligation, and ritual impurity.
Bhakti requires inner purity and freedom from transactional religion. By discouraging gift-addiction and questionable maintenance, the text indirectly protects devotional practice from becoming a livelihood or a social performance rather than sincere worship.
It alludes to Jyotiṣa (a Vedāṅga) through “nakṣatra-pāṭhakāḥ,” indicating that astrological knowledge exists but should not be used in a way that becomes ethically compromising or spiritually distracting.