Narada Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 55

Hari-nāma Mahimā and Caraṇāmṛta: The Redemption of the Hunter Gulika

Uttaṅka Itihāsa

Devanagari script

अहोऽहं पापधीर्नित्यं महापापमुपाचरम् । कथं मे निष्कृति र्भूयो यामि कं शरणं विभोः ॥ ५५ ॥

Transliteration

aho'haṃ pāpadhīrnityaṃ mahāpāpamupācaram | kathaṃ me niṣkṛti rbhūyo yāmi kaṃ śaraṇaṃ vibhoḥ || 55 ||

Translation

അയ്യോ! പാപബുദ്ധിയോടെ ഞാൻ നിത്യവും മഹാപാപങ്ങൾ ചെയ്തു. ഇനി എനിക്ക് പ്രായശ്ചിത്തം എങ്ങനെ? ഹേ വിഭോ! ഞാൻ ആരുടെ ശരണം തേടും?

Word by Word

• aho: alas!
• aho: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/interjection)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: aho (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya (अव्यय), exclamation (विस्मयादि निपात)

• aham: I
• aham: Karta (कर्ता/subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: asmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Pronoun, Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular

• pāpa-dhīḥ: of sinful mind
• pāpa-dhīḥ: Karta (कर्ता/subject-qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: pāpa (प्रातिपदिक) + dhī (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Karmadhāraya (कर्मधारय) ‘pāpā dhīḥ’; Feminine, Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular; predicate/qualifier of ‘aham’

• nityam: always
• nityam: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: nitya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Used adverbially (क्रियाविशेषणवत्), accusative-form adverb ‘always’

• mahā-pāpam: great sin
• mahā-pāpam: Karma (कर्म/object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mahā (प्रातिपदिक) + pāpa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Karmadhāraya (कर्मधारय), Neuter, Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular

• upācaram: I practiced; I committed
• upācaram: Kriyā (क्रिया/predicate)
• Type: Verb
• Root: upa+√car (चर् धातु)
• Form: Imperfect (लङ्), 1st person (उत्तमपुरुष), Singular (एकवचन), Parasmaipada

• katham: how?
• katham: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: katham (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya (अव्यय), interrogative adverb

• me: for me; my
• me: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: asmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Pronoun, Genitive (6th/षष्ठी) or Dative (4th/चतुर्थी), Singular; here genitive ‘of me/for me’

• niṣkṛtiḥ: atonement; expiation
• niṣkṛtiḥ: Karta (कर्ता/subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: niṣkṛti (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine, Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular

• bhūyaḥ: again; further
• bhūyaḥ: Kriyāviśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: bhūyaḥ (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya (अव्यय), adverb

• yāmi: do I go; shall I attain
• yāmi: Kriyā (क्रिया/predicate)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √yā (या धातु)
• Form: Present (लट्), 1st person (उत्तमपुरुष), Singular (एकवचन), Parasmaipada

• kam: whom? which?
• kam: Karma (कर्म/object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kim (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Interrogative pronoun, Masculine, Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular

• śaraṇam: refuge
• śaraṇam: Karma (कर्म/object/complement)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śaraṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular

• vibhoḥ: of the Lord; of the mighty one
• vibhoḥ: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/genitive)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vibhu (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Genitive (6th/षष्ठी), Singular

Speaker

Nārada (inquiry/appeal within the Narada–Sanatkumāra dialogue)

Vrata Kalpa

Vrata: none

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: karuna

Secondary Rasa: shanta

Characters & Entities

• Vibhu (the all-pervading Lord, understood as Viṣṇu)

FAQs

What is the spiritual significance of this verse in Narada Purana?

It captures the turning point of self-recognition (ātma-parīkṣā): acknowledging habitual wrongdoing and urgently seeking niṣkṛti (expiation) through śaraṇa (refuge) in the all-pervading Lord, which the Purāṇa frames as the beginning of real transformation.

How does this verse explain the path of devotion (Bhakti)?

The verse embodies śaraṇāgati—approaching the Lord as the final shelter when one’s own merit is insufficient. This surrender-mood is a core bhakti posture in the Narada Purana: confession, humility, and turning toward Viṣṇu as the rescuing refuge.

What practical Vedic knowledge (Vedanga) is highlighted here?

It points to the Dharma-śāstric idea of prāyaścitta (expiation) rather than a specific Vedāṅga technique; practically, it signals that ritual or ethical remedies must be guided by right understanding and culminate in sincere refuge (śaraṇāgati) to the Lord.