Shloka 21
कālacakra-वर्णनम् तथा āśrama-धarma-निरूपणम्
The Wheel of Time and the Norms of the Āśramas
(त्रीणि धारयते नित्यं कमण्डलुमतन्द्रित: । एकमाचमनार्थाय एकं॑ वै पादधावनम् । एकं शौचविधानार्थमित्येतत् त्रितयं तथा ।॥) वह आलस्य छोड़कर सदा तीन कमण्डलु धारण करे। एक आचमनके लिये, दूसरा पैर धोनेके लिये और तीसरा शौच-सम्पादनके लिये। इस प्रकार कमण्डलु धारणके ये तीन प्रयोजन हैं ।। अधीत्याध्यापनं कुर्यात् तथा यजनयाजने । दान॑ प्रतिग्रहं वापि षड्गुणां वृत्तिमाचरेत्,ब्राह्मणफो अध्ययन-अध्यापन, यजन-याजन और दान तथा प्रतिग्रह--इन छः: वृत्तियोंका आश्रय लेना चाहिये
Vāyudeva uvāca—trīṇi dhārayate nityaṃ kamaṇḍalum atandritaḥ | ekam ācamana-arthāya, ekaṃ vai pāda-dhāvanam | ekaṃ śauca-vidhāna-artham ity etat tritayaṃ tathā || adhītyādhyāpanaṃ kuryāt tathā yajana-yājane | dānaṃ pratigrahaṃ vāpi ṣaḍ-guṇāṃ vṛttim ācaret ||
Vāyudeva said: “A man, casting off sloth, should always carry three water-pots. One is for sipping water in purification (ācamana), one for washing the feet, and one for attending to bodily cleanliness. Such are the three purposes for carrying the kamaṇḍalu. Likewise, one should live by the sixfold Brahminical duties: studying and teaching, performing sacrifice and officiating for others, giving gifts and accepting gifts.”
वायुदेव उवाच
Educational Q&A
The verse teaches disciplined daily conduct rooted in purity and duty: maintain practical means for ritual and bodily cleanliness (three kamaṇḍalus for ācamana, foot-washing, and śauca), and follow the sixfold Brahminical obligations—study/teach, sacrifice/officiate, give/accept—so that livelihood and learning remain aligned with dharma.
Vāyudeva is instructing proper dharmic practice, giving concrete rules of conduct and livelihood. The focus is not on battlefield action but on ethical-ritual guidance: how a disciplined person (especially a Brahmin/ascetic) should organize daily life and duties.