Shloka 25

Adhyaya 28 — Alarka Inquires into Varna and Ashrama Dharma; Madalasa Defines the Fourfold Duties

Sanskrit

तत्रारण्योपभोगश्च तपोभिश्चानुकरषणम् । भूमौ शय्या ब्रह्मचर्यं पितृदेवातिथिक्रिया ॥

Transliteration

tatrāraṇyopabhogaś ca tapobhiś cānukarṣaṇam | bhūmau śayyā brahmacaryaṃ pitṛdevātithikriyā ||

Translation

ಅಲ್ಲಿ ವನವಾಸದಲ್ಲಿ ಅರಣ್ಯದಿಂದ ದೊರೆಯುವ ಆಹಾರದಿಂದಲೇ ಜೀವನ ನಡೆಸಿ, ತಪಸ್ಸುಗಳಿಂದ ದೇಹವನ್ನು ನಿಯಮಿಸಬೇಕು. ನೆಲದ ಮೇಲೆ ಶಯನಿಸಬೇಕು, ಬ್ರಹ್ಮಚರ್ಯ ಆಚರಿಸಬೇಕು, ಪಿತೃ-ದೇವ-ಅತಿಥಿಗಳಿಗೆ ವಿಧಿಪೂರ್ವಕ ಕರ್ಮಗಳನ್ನು ನೆರವೇರಿಸಬೇಕು।

Word by Word

• तत्र: there
• तत्र: अधिकरण (Adhikaraṇa/Locative setting)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (Avyaya), देशवाचक क्रियाविशेषण (locative adverb: ‘there’)

• आरण्योपभोगः: use/enjoyment of forest resources
• आरण्योपभोगः: कर्ता (Karta/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: आरण्य-उपभोग (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), प्रथमा (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular); षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः/विशेषण-निर्देशः (‘of the forest’ + ‘enjoyment/use’)

• च: and
• च: समुच्चय (Conjunctive)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (Avyaya), समुच्चयबोधक निपात (conjunction: ‘and’)

• तपोभिः: by austerities
• तपोभिः: करण (Karaṇa/Instrument)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तपस् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), तृतीया (Instrumental/3rd), बहुवचन (Plural)

• च: and
• च: समुच्चय (Conjunctive)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, समुच्चयबोधक (and)

• अनुकरषणम्: following/attraction (discipline of following)
• अनुकरषणम्: कर्ता (Karta/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अनु-√कृष् (धातु) + अन (प्रत्यय) → अनुकरषण (प्रातिपदिक/कृदन्त-भाव)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा/द्वितीया (Nom./Acc.), एकवचन (Singular); भाववाचक कृदन्त (action-noun: ‘drawing after/attracting, following’)

• भूमौ: on the ground
• भूमौ: अधिकरण (Adhikaraṇa/Location)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भूमि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग (Feminine), सप्तमी (Locative/7th), एकवचन (Singular)

• शय्या: bed (sleeping-place)
• शय्या: कर्ता (Karta/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शय्या (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग (Feminine), प्रथमा (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular)

• ब्रह्मचर्यम्: celibacy/continence
• ब्रह्मचर्यम्: कर्ता (Karta/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ब्रह्मचर्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा/द्वितीया (Nom./Acc.), एकवचन (Singular)

• पितृदेवातिथिक्रिया: rites/service to ancestors, gods, and guests
• पितृदेवातिथिक्रिया: कर्ता (Karta/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पितृ-देव-अतिथि-क्रिया (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग (Feminine), प्रथमा (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular); समाहार-द्वन्द्वः (collective dvandva) + ‘क्रिया’ (service/rites)

Speakers

• Not specified in input (Dharma-instruction voice within Markandeya Purāṇa’s didactic narrative)

Verse Rasa

{ "primaryRasa": "shanta", "secondaryRasa": "bhakti", "rasaIntensity": 0, "emotionalArcPosition": "", "moodDescriptors": [] }

Key Themes

• Dharma
• Āśrama system
• Vānaprastha
• Tapas
• Pitṛ-yajña
• Atithi-sevā

FAQs

What is the philosophical or ethical takeaway?

Vānaprastha is presented as a disciplined transition from household life: simplifying consumption, intensifying tapas, and maintaining obligations of reverence (ancestors, deities) and hospitality (guests).

How does this fit the Pancalakshana (5 characteristics)?

Primarily Dharma-śikṣā within the Purāṇic instruction stream; not directly sarga/pratisarga/vaṃśa/manvantara/vaṃśānucarita, though it supports social order that Purāṇas preserve alongside genealogies.

What is the esoteric significance?

Forest subsistence and sleeping on earth symbolize grounding the ego; continence and tapas redirect vitality toward inner clarity, while pitṛ-deva-atithi rites keep the renunciant aligned with cosmic reciprocity rather than mere self-denial.