Shloka 253

Aśmagīta: Janaka’s Inquiry on Loss, Kāla, and the Limits of Control (अश्मगीता)

Devanagari script

निर्माणे यस्य यद्‌ दिष्टं तेन गच्छति सेतुना । रोग, अग्नि, जल, शस्त्र, भूख, प्यास, विपत्ति, विष, ज्वर और ऊँचे स्थानसे गिरना--ये सब जीवकी मृत्युके निमित्त हैं। जन्मके समय जिसके लिये प्रारब्धवश जो निमित्त नियत कर दिया गया है, वही उसका सेतु है, अतः उसीके द्वारा वह जाता है अर्थात्‌ परलोकमें गमन करता है

Transliteration

nirmāṇe yasya yad diṣṭaṃ tena gacchati setunā | rogo 'gnir jalaṃ śastraṃ bubhukṣā pipāsā vipattir viṣaṃ jvaraś ca uccasthānād patanaṃ ca—etāni sarvāṇi jīvasya mṛtyu-nimittāni | janma-kāle yasya yac chubha-aśubhaṃ prārabdha-vaśān nimittaṃ niyataṃ kṛtaṃ tad eva tasya setuḥ; tenaiva sa gacchati, arthāt paralokaṃ yāti |

Translation

ພຣະຣາຊາຊະນະກະກ່າວວ່າ: ສຳລັບສັດມີຊີວິດແຕ່ລະຕົນ ຈຸດຈົບໃດທີ່ຖືກກຳນົດໄວ້ແຕ່ເວລາເກີດ—ດ້ວຍ “ສະພານ” ນັ້ນເອງ ມັນຈຶ່ງຈາກໄປ. ໂຣກ, ໄຟ, ນ້ຳ, ອາວຸດ, ຄວາມຫິວໂຫຍ, ຄວາມກະຫາຍ, ໄພພິບັດ, ພິດ, ໄຂ້, ແລະການຕົກຈາກທີ່ສູງ—ເຫຼົ່ານີ້ລ້ວນແຕ່ເປັນເຫດປັດໃຈທີ່ອາດກາຍເປັນສາເຫດແຫ່ງຄວາມຕາຍ. ແຕ່ເຫດການສະເພາະທີ່ຖືກກຳນົດໄວ້ໂດຍ prārabdha ຕັ້ງແຕ່ເກີດ ນັ້ນແຫຼະແມ່ນສະພານຂອງຄົນນັ້ນ; ດ້ວຍມັນເທົ່ານັ້ນ ຈຶ່ງຂ້າມໄປ—ໝາຍເຖິງ ໄປສູ່ໂລກໜ້າ.

Word by Word

• {'nirmāṇa': 'coming into being

• (here) the time of embodiment/birth', 'diṣṭa': 'ordained, appointed, destined', 'setu': 'bridge

• a fixed means of crossing (metaphor for the destined occasion of death)', 'gacchati': 'goes, departs', 'roga': 'disease', 'agni': 'fire', 'jala': 'water', 'śastra': 'weapon', 'bubhukṣā': 'hunger', 'pipāsā': 'thirst', 'vipatti': 'misfortune, calamity', 'viṣa': 'poison', 'jvara': 'fever', 'uccasthānāt patanam': 'falling from a high place', 'jīva': 'living being, embodied self', 'mṛtyu-nimitta': 'occasion/cause leading to death', 'janma-kāla': 'time of birth', 'prārabdha': 'already-begun karma bearing fruit in the present life', 'niyata': 'fixed, determined', 'paraloka': 'the other world

Speaker

जनक उवाच

Characters & Entities

• Janaka

Educational Q&A

What is the core teaching?

Many external factors can appear to cause death, but the text emphasizes that the specific manner and moment of death are governed by prārabdha (ripened karma) fixed from birth; those factors are only instruments through which destiny operates.

What is happening in the narrative?

King Janaka is speaking in a reflective, philosophical context, explaining to his listener(s) that death comes through a pre-appointed ‘bridge’ (setu), even though it may outwardly seem to arise from disease, accident, violence, or other contingencies.