Vamana Purana — Sukesha's Boon & Twelve Dharmas, Shloka 10
Sukesha’s Boon, the Twelve Dharmas of Beings, and the Cosmography of the Seven Dvipas with the Twenty-One Hells
किंस्विच्छ्रेयः परे लोके किमु चेह द्विजोत्तमाः केन पूज्यस्तथा सत्सु केनासौ सुखमेधते
kiṃsvicchreyaḥ pare loke kimu ceha dvijottamāḥ kena pūjyastathā satsu kenāsau sukhamedhate
Wahai para dvijottama, apakah kebaikan tertinggi di alam sana, dan apakah (kebaikan tertinggi) di sini? Dengan apa seseorang menjadi layak dipuja di tengah orang saleh, dan dengan apa ia bertumbuh dalam kebahagiaan?
{ "primaryRasa": "shanta", "secondaryRasa": "adbhuta", "rasaIntensity": 0, "emotionalArcPosition": "", "moodDescriptors": [] }
FAQs
The verse frames a classic dharma-question: what brings enduring welfare both here and hereafter, and what makes a person truly worthy of honor among the virtuous. It signals that mere worldly success is insufficient unless aligned with śreyas (lasting good).
This is best categorized under dharma-upadeśa within narrative dialogue rather than core cosmological lakṣaṇas. In pañcalakṣaṇa terms, it is adjacent to ācāra/dharma instruction embedded in itihāsa-style narration, not sarga/pratisarga proper.
By pairing ‘here’ and ‘hereafter,’ the text symbolically binds artha/kāma to dharma and mokṣa-oriented values. ‘Worthy of worship among the good’ implies that social honor is ideally governed by sat (virtue/truth), not power or birth alone.