Padma Purana — Bhumi Khanda, Shloka 33
The Sukalā Account in the Vena Episode: Krikala, Pilgrimage, and the Primacy of Wifely-Dharma
तस्माद्भार्यां विना धर्मः पुरुषस्य न सिध्यति । नास्ति भार्यासमं तीर्थं पुंसां सुगतिदायकम्
tasmādbhāryāṃ vinā dharmaḥ puruṣasya na sidhyati | nāsti bhāryāsamaṃ tīrthaṃ puṃsāṃ sugatidāyakam
Por eso, sin esposa, el dharma del hombre no llega a cumplirse. Para los varones no hay tīrtha igual a la esposa, que otorga buen destino y feliz tránsito.
Unspecified (narratorial/teaching voice within Bhūmi-khaṇḍa context)
Primary Rasa: adbhuta
Secondary Rasa: shanta
Type: tirtha
Sandhi Resolution Notes: तस्माद्भार्यां → तस्मात् + भार्याम्; नास्ति → न + अस्ति; भार्यासमं → भार्या-समम् (समास); सुगतिदायकम् → सुगति-दायकम् (समास).
FAQs
It teaches that a man’s dharma is traditionally fulfilled in the gṛhastha (householder) stage with a wife, since many duties—ritual, ethical, and social—are undertaken as a partnership.
A tīrtha purifies and helps one ‘cross over’ toward auspicious ends; the verse uses this metaphor to present the wife as a powerful aid to virtue, purification, and attaining a good destiny (sugati).
No. While it includes ritual completeness, it also points to broader dharma—shared responsibility, moral discipline, and the supportive companionship through which a life of righteousness becomes stable and fruitful.