Shloka 19
Diti’s Untimely Desire and the Birth-Cause of the Asura Line
Prelude to Hiranyākṣa–Varāha
यामाहुरात्मनो ह्यर्धं श्रेयस्कामस्य मानिनि । यस्यां स्वधुरमध्यस्य पुमांश्चरति विज्वर: ॥ १९ ॥
yām āhur ātmano hy ardhaṁ śreyas-kāmasya mānini yasyāṁ sva-dhuram adhyasya pumāṁś carati vijvaraḥ
ឱ នារីដ៏គួរគោរព ភរិយាត្រូវបានហៅថា “ពាក់កណ្តាល” នៃបុរស ព្រោះនាងចូលរួមក្នុងកិច្ចមង្គលទាំងអស់។ ដោយផ្ទេរភារកិច្ចឲ្យនាង បុរសអាចដើរទៅដោយគ្មានកង្វល់។
By the Vedic injunction, the wife is accepted as the better half of a man’s body because she is supposed to be responsible for discharging half of the duties of the husband. A family man has a responsibility to perform five kinds of sacrifices, called pañca-yajña, in order to get relief from all kinds of unavoidable sinful reaction incurred in the course of his affairs. When a man becomes qualitatively like the cats and dogs, he forgets his duties in cultivating spiritual values, and thus he accepts his wife as a sense gratificatory agency. When the wife is accepted as a sense gratificatory agency, personal beauty is the main consideration, and as soon as there is a break in personal sense gratification, there is disruption or divorce. But when husband and wife aim at spiritual advancement by mutual cooperation, there is no consideration of personal beauty or the disruption of so-called love. In the material world there is no question of love. Marriage is actually a duty performed in mutual cooperation as directed in the authoritative scriptures for spiritual advancement. Therefore marriage is essential in order to avoid the life of cats and dogs, who are not meant for spiritual enlightenment.
FAQs
In this verse, Kashyapa tells Diti that for a person seeking true welfare (śreyas), the wife is considered half of one’s own self because she supports and shares the duties of household life, helping the husband live without anxiety.
Kashyapa speaks to calm and instruct Diti within their marital context, emphasizing the sacred partnership of husband and wife and the role of mutual support in maintaining dharma—especially as Diti presses her demands at an improper time.
Treat marriage as a dharmic partnership: share responsibilities, protect one another’s peace of mind, and make choices aligned with long-term spiritual and moral welfare rather than momentary impulse.