Shloka 14
Karma, Varṇa-Dharma, and Dāna as the Soul’s True Companion on the Path to Yama
वैश्यः स्वकर्माणि विशोचते तदा गृहीतपाशो न मयापि सञ्चितम् / सत्यं न चोक्तं क्रय विक्रयेण मोहाद्विमूढेन कुटुम्बहेतवे
vaiśyaḥ svakarmāṇi viśocate tadā gṛhītapāśo na mayāpi sañcitam / satyaṃ na coktaṃ kraya vikrayeṇa mohādvimūḍhena kuṭumbahetave
അപ്പോൾ വൈശ്യൻ തന്റെ കർമ്മങ്ങളെക്കുറിച്ച് വിലപിക്കുന്നു, യമപാശത്തിൽ പിടിക്കപ്പെട്ടവൻ—“പരലോകത്തിനായി ഞാൻ ഒന്നും സംഭരിച്ചില്ല. കുടുംബമോഹത്തിൽ മയങ്ങി വാങ്ങൽ-വിൽപ്പനയിൽ സത്യം പറഞ്ഞില്ല।”
Lord Vishnu (narrating to Garuda/Vinata-putra about the soul’s remorse after death)
Afterlife Stage: Yamaloka Journey
Concept: Satya (truthfulness) and honest livelihood are dharma; wealth hoarded for family without dharmic giving fails to aid the next world.
Vedantic Theme: Karma-bandha through rāga (attachment) and moha (delusion); ethical action purifies antaḥkaraṇa and supports higher pursuit.
Application: Practice truthful speech in transactions, avoid deceitful profit, allocate wealth for dāna and dharmic duties rather than only familial accumulation.
Primary Rasa: karuna
Secondary Rasa: bhayanaka
Type: judgment-path / threshold space
Related Themes: Garuda Purana Pretakalpa: themes of Yama-pāśa, post-mortem regret, and merchantly deceit leading to suffering (general parallel passages)
FAQs
This verse frames dishonest buying and selling as a moral failure that produces intense remorse after death, showing that everyday commerce is also governed by dharma and karma.
By depicting the soul as “seized by the noose,” it points to Yama’s jurisdiction and the post-death reckoning where one’s actions—especially deceit—return as suffering and regret.
Practice truthful speech and fair dealing in business, and do not justify unethical actions as “for the family,” since such delusion becomes a cause of later anguish.