Shloka 19
Prohibitions and Rules of Right Conduct (Ācāra): Theft, Speech, Purity, Residence, and Social Boundaries
अगोत्रधर्म्माचरणात्क्षिप्रं नश्यति वै कुलम् । अश्रोत्रियेषु दानाच्चा वृषलेषु तथैव च
agotradharmmācaraṇātkṣipraṃ naśyati vai kulam | aśrotriyeṣu dānāccā vṛṣaleṣu tathaiva ca
ການປະພຶດຂັດກັບໂຄດຣາແລະທຳຂອງຕົນ ທຳໃຫ້ສາຍຕະກູນພິນາດໄວ; ເຊັ່ນດຽວກັນ ການໃຫ້ທານແກ່ຜູ້ບໍ່ແມ່ນ śrotriya ແລະແກ່ vṛṣala ກໍເປັນເຫດໃຫ້ພິນາດ.
Unspecified (narrative voice within Svarga-khaṇḍa Adhyaya 55)
Concept: Kula-kṣaya (decline of lineage) follows from violating one’s prescribed dharma and misdirecting dāna to unqualified recipients.
Application: Align livelihood, rituals, and charity with ethical discernment: give with respect to learning/character, avoid enabling harmful conduct, and maintain family practices that cultivate sattva (truthfulness, cleanliness, restraint).
Primary Rasa: bhayanaka
Secondary Rasa: shanta
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"A solemn teaching scene in a forest hermitage: an elder sage gestures toward a family altar where the sacred fire burns low, symbolizing lineage decline when dharma is neglected. In the background, two paths diverge—one lined with Vedic manuscripts and clean water pots, the other strewn with broken vessels—evoking the consequences of misdirected charity and conduct.","primary_figures":["a venerable ṛṣi (teacher figure)","a young dvija householder","ancestral silhouettes near a kula-devatā altar"],"setting":"āśrama courtyard with agnihotra altar, palm-leaf manuscripts, dāna vessels, and a distant village edge","lighting_mood":"temple lamp-lit","color_palette":["smoke gray","saffron ochre","deep maroon","antique gold","leaf green"],"tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore painting style: a sage instructing a dvija beside an agnihotra altar, gold leaf halos, rich red-green drapery, ornate vessels for dāna, subtle depiction of two contrasting paths (śāstra-aligned vs adharma), gem-studded ornaments, traditional South Indian iconographic framing, intricate floral borders.","pahari_prompt":"Pahari miniature style: delicate hermitage scene with refined faces, a sage pointing to palm-leaf Veda texts, a subdued household altar, distant village silhouettes, cool earthy palette with lyrical trees and a winding path, fine linework and soft shading.","kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala mural style: bold black outlines, sage and householder in frontal poses, stylized agni with curling flames, symbolic split-path motif, natural pigments with dominant reds/yellows/greens, temple-wall aesthetic and large expressive eyes.","pichwai_prompt":"Pichwai cloth painting style: devotional moral tableau framed by lotus and vine borders, central sacred fire and dāna vessels, symbolic purity motifs (conch, lotus), peacocks at the margins, deep indigo background with gold detailing, narrative medallions showing ‘proper dāna’ vs ‘apātra dāna’."}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"dramatic","suggested_raga":"Bhairavi","pace":"moderate-narrative","voice_tone":"authoritative","sound_elements":["low temple bells","crackling sacred fire","distant village murmur","conch shell (soft, occasional)"]}
Sandhi Resolution Notes: अगोत्रधर्म्माचरणात्क्षिप्रं→अगोत्र-धर्म-अचरणात् क्षिप्रम्; दानाच्चा→दानात् च (sandhi);
FAQs
It warns that a lineage deteriorates quickly when people abandon their prescribed gotra- and dharma-based conduct, and when charity is misdirected to unqualified recipients.
An aśrotriya is someone not recognized as a śrotriya—i.e., not properly trained/established in Vedic learning and discipline—so gifts given there are treated as ethically improper in this verse’s framework.
The verse emphasizes discernment in giving: dāna should be offered in alignment with dharma and to worthy recipients; indiscriminate or dharmically improper giving is portrayed as harmful to one’s family and spiritual order.