Shloka 28
The Deeds of Sukalā (Vena Episode): Husband as Tīrtha & Pativratā-Dharma
अनघा नैव वै त्याज्या पुरुषैः शृणु सत्तम । मूलमेवं हि धर्मस्य पुरुषस्य महामते
anaghā naiva vai tyājyā puruṣaiḥ śṛṇu sattama | mūlamevaṃ hi dharmasya puruṣasya mahāmate
ഹേ സത്തമാ, കേൾക്കുക—നിർദോഷയായ സ്ത്രീയെ പുരുഷന്മാർ ഒരിക്കലും ഉപേക്ഷിക്കരുത്; കാരണം, ഹേ മഹാമതേ, അവളാണ് പുരുഷന്റെ ധർമ്മത്തിന്റെ മൂലം.
Unspecified (context-dependent within Adhyaya 41)
Concept: A blameless wife is not to be abandoned; she is described as the root-support of a man’s dharma—household righteousness depends on honoring the sahadharmacharini.
Application: Treat marital commitment as a sacred vow: protect, provide, and consult; do not discard relationships for convenience or impulse.
Primary Rasa: shanta
Secondary Rasa: karuna
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"A teacher-figure addresses a gathered audience, raising a palm in instruction as the words ‘naiva tyajyā’ ring with solemn authority. Behind him, a symbolic vignette shows a devoted wife standing beside the household fire, embodying the ‘root of dharma’.","primary_figures":["dharma-preacher/sage","devoted wife (anaghā)","householder man"],"setting":"assembly hall with a small sacred fire altar; side-panel imagery of a home shrine with Vishnu lamp","lighting_mood":"temple lamp-lit","color_palette":["ochre","smoke gray","vermilion","leaf green","burnished gold"],"tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore painting style: didactic court/assembly scene with a sage-teacher gesturing, gold leaf accents on the fire altar and ornaments, a symbolic wife near the agni-kunda, rich vermilion and green textiles, traditional iconographic symmetry and ornate borders.","pahari_prompt":"Pahari miniature style: refined discourse scene under a pavilion, soft shading, attentive listeners, a small yajna fire, the wife depicted with gentle dignity, cool earthy palette and delicate floral margins.","kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala mural style: frontal teacher figure with emphatic hand gesture, stylized agni flames, patterned garments, bold outlines, warm reds and yellows dominating, the wife as an emblematic figure of dharma at the side.","pichwai_prompt":"Pichwai cloth painting style: moral tableau framed by lotus creepers and peacocks, central discourse with decorative borders, symbolic household shrine elements, deep indigo background with gold highlights and floral motifs."}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"authoritative","suggested_raga":"Bhairavi","pace":"slow-meditative","voice_tone":"authoritative","sound_elements":["temple bells","low drone (tanpura)","crackling sacred fire","silence between lines"]}
Sandhi Resolution Notes: नैव = न + एव; मूलमेवं = मूलम् + एवम्
FAQs
It teaches marital fidelity and moral responsibility: a virtuous, blameless wife should not be abandoned, since the household order and a man’s righteous life are grounded in that relationship.
It states that she is the “root” (mūla) of a man’s dharma—implying that stability, virtue, and religious duty in household life depend upon honoring and protecting a righteous spouse.
The verse specifically qualifies the wife as “anaghā” (blameless). Traditional dharma discussions often treat abandonment as a grave wrong when the spouse is innocent, while other cases are handled by separate legal-ethical rules in dharma literature.