Markandeya Purana — Adhyaya 15, Shloka 66

Adhyaya 15 — Karmic Retribution: Rebirths After Naraka and the King’s Compassion in Hell

Sanskrit

यमपुरुष उवाच एष धर्मश्च शक्रश्च त्वां नेतुं समुपागतौ ।

अवश्यं अस्माद् गन्तव्यं तस्मात् पार्थिव गम्यताम् ॥

Transliteration

yamapuruṣa uvāca eṣa dharmaś ca śakraś ca tvāṃ netuṃ samupāgatau |

avaśyaṃ asmād gantavyaṃ tasmāt pārthiva gamyatām ||

Translation

ຂ້າຮັບໃຊ້ຂອງຍະມະກ່າວວ່າ: «ນີ້ແມ່ນທໍາມະ ແລະ ສັກຣະ (ອິນທຣະ) ຜູ້ມາເພື່ອນໍາທ່ານໄປ. ຈາກທີ່ນີ້ ທ່ານຈະຕ້ອງຈາກໄປແນ່ນອນ; ດັ່ງນັ້ນ ໂອ ພະຣາຊາ, ຂໍໃຫ້ເປັນດັ່ງນັ້ນ—ຈົ່ງໄປ»។

Word by Word

• yamapuruṣaḥ: Yama’s attendant
• yamapuruṣaḥ: Karta (कर्ता) of uvāca
• Type: Noun
• Root: yama-puruṣa (प्रातिपदिक; यम+पुरुष)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular; तत्पुरुष—‘यमस्य पुरुषः’ (servant/messenger of Yama)

• uvāca: said
• uvāca: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vac (धातु)
• Form: Perfect (लिट्), 3rd person, Singular, Parasmaipada

• eṣaḥ: this (one)
• eṣaḥ: Karta (कर्ता) of implied ‘asti’ / subject of identification
• Type: Noun
• Root: etad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular; demonstrative pronoun

• dharmaḥ: Dharma
• dharmaḥ: Apposition (समानाधिकरण) with eṣaḥ
• Type: Noun
• Root: dharma (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• ca: and
• ca: Samuccaya
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: Conjunction

• śakraḥ: Śakra (Indra)
• śakraḥ: Karta (कर्ता) (co-subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śakra (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Nominative, Singular

• ca: and
• ca: Samuccaya
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: Conjunction

• tvām: you
• tvām: Karma (कर्म) of netum
• Type: Noun
• Root: yusmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Accusative (द्वितीया), Singular; 2nd person pronoun

• netum: to lead
• netum: Prayojana (प्रयोजन) / purpose of samupāgatau
• Type: Verb
• Root: nī (धातु)
• Form: Infinitive (तुमुन्); ‘to lead’

• samupāgatau: have arrived
• samupāgatau: Kriyā (क्रिया) with dual subject dharmaḥ+śakraḥ
• Type: Verb
• Root: sam-upa-ā-gam (धातु) + kta (कृदन्त)
• Form: Past participle (क्त) used as finite-like; Masculine, Nominative, Dual (द्विवचन); ‘having come/arrived’

• avaśyam: certainly, necessarily
• avaśyam: Kriyā-viśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: avaśya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Adverb (क्रियाविशेषण) ‘necessarily’

• asmāt: from here
• asmāt: Apādāna (अपादान) with gantavyam
• Type: Noun
• Root: idam (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Ablative (पञ्चमी), Singular; ‘from here/from this (place)’

• gantavyam: must be departed
• gantavyam: Kriyā (क्रिया) obligation predicate
• Type: Verb
• Root: gam (धातु) + tavya (कृत्)
• Form: Gerundive/obligatory participle (तव्यत्), Neuter, Nominative, Singular; impersonal obligation ‘it must be gone’

• tasmāt: therefore
• tasmāt: Hetu (हेतु)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: tad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Ablative used adverbially ‘therefore’

• pārthiva: O king
• pārthiva: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pārthiva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Vocative (सम्बोधन), Singular; address to the king

• gamyatām: let (you) go / please proceed
• gamyatām: Kriyā (क्रिया) injunction
• Type: Verb
• Root: gam (धातु)
• Form: Imperative (लोट्), 3rd person, Singular, Ātmanepada (आत्मनेपद); passive-style command ‘let it be gone/please go’

Speakers

• Yama’s attendant (yamapuruṣa) to the king

Verse Rasa

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

Primary Deities

• Dharma
• Indra
• Yama (implied)

Key Themes

• Dharma
• Afterlife
• Divine order
• Inevitability (niyati-like tone)

FAQs

What is the philosophical or ethical takeaway?

Even merit and divine favor operate within cosmic administration: dharma is escorted and verified. The verse underscores that transitions between states (nāraka/svarga) are governed, not random.

How does this fit the Pancalakshana (5 characteristics)?

Narrative ethical-theological material (not a direct pancalakṣaṇa category), illustrating how dharma-phala is administered—supporting purāṇic dharma exposition.

What is the esoteric significance?

The ‘attendants’ symbolize karmic forces that compel movement from one experiential realm to another; the arrival of Dharma and Indra indicates that higher discernment and sovereignty are now relevant to the soul’s trajectory.