Shloka 40

Dietary Rules & Purification — Dietary Rules, Purification (Śauca), and the Duties of the Householder and Forest-Dweller

Devanagari script

नित्यस्य कर्मणो हानिः केवलं मृतजन्मसु न तु नैमित्तिकोच्छेदः कर्त्तव्यो हि कथञ्चन

Transliteration

nityasya karmaṇo hāniḥ kevalaṃ mṛtajanmasu na tu naimittikocchedaḥ karttavyo hi kathañcana

Translation

En cas d’impureté due à un décès ou à une naissance, seuls les rites quotidiens obligatoires (nitya-karman) sont suspendus ; mais les rites occasionnels/conditionnels (naimittika) ne doivent en aucune manière être abandonnés.

Word by Word

• nityasya: of the daily (obligatory)
• nityasya: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/षष्ठी)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: nitya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग/पुंलिङ्ग (कर्मणः इति नपुंसकस्य विशेषणम्), षष्ठी-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विशेषणम्

• karmaṇaḥ: of (ritual) duty/action
• karmaṇaḥ: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/षष्ठी)
• Type: Noun
• Root: karman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग, षष्ठी-विभक्ति, एकवचन; सम्बन्ध

• hāniḥ: cessation/loss
• hāniḥ: Karta (कर्ता/वाक्यविषयः)
• Type: Noun
• Root: hāni (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; भाववाचक-संज्ञा

• kevalam: only
• kevalam: Kriyā-viśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: kevala (प्रातिपदिक/अव्ययीभाववत्)
• Form: अव्यय (क्रियाविशेषण); ‘only/merely’

• mṛta-janmasu: in cases of death (occasions)
• mṛta-janmasu: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण/सप्तमी)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mṛta + janman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: कर्मधारय-समास (‘मृतं जन्म’ = death-birth/occasion of death); नपुंसकलिङ्ग, सप्तमी-विभक्ति (Locative/7th), बहुवचन; अधिकरण

• na: not
• na: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/अव्यय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेध-अव्यय (negation particle)

• tu: but
• tu: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/अव्यय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tu (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; विरोध/विशेषार्थ (but/however)

• naimittika-ucchedaḥ: cessation of occasional (rites)
• naimittika-ucchedaḥ: Karta (कर्ता/वाक्यविषयः)
• Type: Noun
• Root: naimittika + uccheda (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: तत्पुरुष-समास (नैमित्तिकस्य उच्छेदः); पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन

• kartavyaḥ: to be done/should be performed
• kartavyaḥ: Vidhi (विधेय/आदेश)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: kṛ (धातु) + tavya (कृत्य-प्रत्यय)
• Form: कृत्य-प्रत्ययान्त (तव्यत्), पुंलिङ्ग, प्रथमा-विभक्ति, एकवचन; विधेय-विशेषण (to be done)

• hi: indeed
• hi: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/अव्यय)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: hi (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; हेत्वर्थ/निश्चयार्थ (indeed/for)

• kathañcana: in any way (at all)
• kathañcana: Kriyā-viśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: kathañcana (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय; ‘in any way/at all’ (emphatic)

Speakers

• Unspecified in input (commonly Pulastya → Nārada as overarching frame)

Key Themes

• Vrata/Rituals
• Āśauca (birth/death impurity)
• Nitya vs Naimittika duties
• Ritual continuity

Verse Rasa (Emotional Flavour)

{ "primaryRasa": "shanta", "secondaryRasa": "", "rasaIntensity": 0, "emotionalArcPosition": "", "moodDescriptors": [] }

FAQs

What is the philosophical or ethical takeaway?

Dharma is contextual: impurity rules may temporarily suspend routine practice, yet one must not abandon cause-based duties. The teaching prioritizes discernment (viveka) over blanket renunciation of obligation.

How does this fit the Pancalakshana?

It belongs to Purāṇic dharma-ācāra material rather than the five classical lakṣaṇas; many Purāṇas incorporate such normative guidance alongside myth and genealogy.

What is the symbolic significance?

The distinction implies that ‘daily rhythm’ may pause under liminal conditions (birth/death), but dharma responding to a specific sacred occasion must continue—symbolizing steadiness of moral responsibility amid life’s transitions.