Shloka 20
पुंसां क्रिया-विभागः, संस्काराः, नामकरणम्, विवाहविधानम्
यस्याश् च लोमशे जङ्घे गुल्फौ यस्यास् तथोन्नतौ कूपो यस्या हसन्त्याश् च गण्डयोस् तां च नोद्वहेत्
yasyāś ca lomaśe jaṅghe gulphau yasyās tathonnatau kūpo yasyā hasantyāś ca gaṇḍayos tāṃ ca nodvahet
जिसकी पिंडलियों (जंघाओं) पर बहुत बाल हों, जिसके टखने बहुत ऊंचे (उभरे हुए) हों, और जिसके हंसते समय गालों में गड्ढे (डिंपल) पड़ते हों, उस स्त्री से विवाह नहीं करना चाहिए।
Sage Parāśara (in instruction to Maitreya, within dharma/ācāra teaching)
FAQs
Here, lakṣaṇas are presented as practical criteria used in traditional dharma literature for assessing marital suitability, reflecting social norms aimed at household stability rather than metaphysical doctrine.
In this chapter’s instructional mode, Parāśara frames marriage as a dharmic institution of the gṛhastha stage, giving do’s-and-don’ts that are meant to support orderly family life and social continuity.
Even when the verse is social-ethical, it sits within the Purana’s broader vision where dharma sustains the cosmos under Vishnu’s sovereignty; household order is treated as one layer of that universal order.