Valmiki Ramayana 1.59.18: Bala Kanda, Sarga 59, Shloka 18

विश्वामित्रस्य शरणागति-प्रशंसा तथा वासिष्ठपुत्र-शापः

Visvamitra grants refuge; the curse upon Vasishta’s sons

Devanagari script

अद्य ते कालपाशेन नीता वैवस्वतक्षयम् ।

सप्तजातिशतान्येव मृतपस्सन्तु सर्वशः ॥१८॥

Recitation with translationValmiki Ramayana 1.59.18

Transliteration

adya te kāla-pāśena nītā vaivasvata-kṣayam |

sapta-jāti-śatāny eva mṛta-pāḥ santu sarvaśaḥ ||18||

Translation

आज ही मौत की रस्सी इनके गले में पड़ेगी। यमराज के पास ले जायेंगे इनको। और सात सौ जनम तक यह लोग मुर्दों का खाना खायेंगे। हर जनम में ऐसा ही होगा।

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Word by Word

• adya: today
• adya: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: adya (अव्यय)
• Form: Kāla-avyaya (Temporal adverb/कालवाचक)

• te: they
• te: Karta (कर्ता/Subject of santu; also of nītāḥ in passive sense)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Puṃliṅga, Prathamā, Bahuvacana; sarvanāma

• kāla-pāśena: by the noose of Death/Time
• kāla-pāśena: Karaṇa (करण/Instrument)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kāla (प्रातिपदिक) + pāśa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Tatpuruṣa (तत्पुरुष; kālasya pāśaḥ), Puṃliṅga, Tṛtīyā (Instrumental), Ekavacana

• nītāḥ: led/brought
• nītāḥ: Karta (कर्ता/Subject complement; ‘having been led’)
• Type: Verb
• Root: nī (नी धातु)
• Form: Kta (क्त) past passive participle, Puṃliṅga, Prathamā, Bahuvacana; karmavācya (passive)

• vaivasvata-kṣayam: to Yama’s abode
• vaivasvata-kṣayam: Karma (कर्म/Goal with nītāḥ)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vaivasvata (प्रातिपदिक) + kṣaya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Tatpuruṣa (तत्पुरुष; vaivasvatasya kṣayaḥ = Yama’s abode), Puṃliṅga, Dvitīyā, Ekavacana

• sapta-jāti-śatāni: seven hundred births
• sapta-jāti-śatāni: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण/Extent: ‘for seven hundred births’)
• Type: Noun
• Root: sapta (प्रातिपदिक) + jāti (प्रातिपदिक) + śata (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Dvigu-samāsa (द्विगु; numerical compound), Napuṃsakaliṅga, Prathamā/Dvitīyā, Bahuvacana (here as measure/extent)

• eva: indeed/only
• eva: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/Emphasis)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: eva (अव्यय)
• Form: Avadhāraṇa-avyaya (Emphatic particle/अवधारण)

• mṛta-paḥ: corpse-eaters
• mṛta-paḥ: Karta (कर्ता/Predicate noun with santu)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mṛta (प्रातिपदिक) + pa (पा/प धातु-निष्पन्न प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Tatpuruṣa (तत्पुरुष; mṛtān pāti/‘feeds on the dead’), Puṃliṅga, Prathamā, Bahuvacana (collective sense with te)

• santu: let them be
• santu: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: as (अस् धातु)
• Form: Loṭ-lakāra (Imperative/लोट्; benedictive/command sense), Prathama-puruṣa (3rd), Bahuvacana, Parasmaipada

• sarvaśaḥ: in every way/entirely
• sarvaśaḥ: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: sarvaśas (अव्यय)
• Form: Prakāra-avyaya (Manner adverb/प्रकारवाचक)

Context

Caught by the noose of death this day, they shall be brought to the abode of Yama and for seven hundred births, feed on corpses.

Characters & Entities

• Kāla (Death/Time)
• Vaivasvata (Yama)
• Vasiṣṭha’s sons

FAQs

What is the core ethical principle (Dharma) in this verse?

Actions and speech generate consequences (karma); the verse also cautions that punitive power, when driven by anger, risks becoming ethically excessive.

What is the narrative situation?

Viśvāmitra utters a curse specifying death and prolonged degraded rebirths for the offenders.

Which character virtue is emphasized?

The narrative highlights the fearful efficacy of ascetic speech (vāg-bala), indirectly teaching that such power should be governed by dharma.