Shloka 5
Narration of the Greatness of Harivāsara
Ekādaśī, the Day Sacred to Hari
दलेनैकेन लभते कोटियज्ञफलं द्विज । अगम्यागमने चैव यत्पापं समुदाहृतम्
dalenaikena labhate koṭiyajñaphalaṃ dvija | agamyāgamane caiva yatpāpaṃ samudāhṛtam
ഹേ ദ്വിജാ! ഒരു ഇലകൊണ്ടുതന്നെ കോടി യജ്ഞഫലം ലഭിക്കുന്നു; സമീപിക്കരുതാത്തവനെ സമീപിച്ചതിൽ പറയപ്പെട്ട പാപവും അതോടെ നശിക്കുന്നു.
Unspecified (narrative voice addressing a brāhmaṇa: 'dvija')
Concept: A small, sincere offering can outweigh vast Vedic sacrificial merit and can neutralize even socially/ritually grave transgressions when aligned with Viṣṇu-bhakti.
Application: Offer a single leaf (commonly tulasī/patra in Vaiṣṇava practice) with reverence, and pair it with ethical restraint; treat devotion as a daily corrective rather than a rare grand ritual.
Primary Rasa: adbhuta
Secondary Rasa: shanta
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"A humble brāhmaṇa stands before a small Viṣṇu shrine, offering a single sacred leaf with folded hands. Behind him, faint spectral silhouettes of grand fire-altars and countless yajñas dissolve into light, showing how simple devotion eclipses vast ritualism; a dark stain of sin lifts like smoke and vanishes.","primary_figures":["Viṣṇu (icon or four-armed form)","brāhmaṇa devotee","attendant sages (optional)"],"setting":"Temple alcove with a small altar, conch and bell, a copper plate for offerings; distant imagined yajña-vedīs fading into the background.","lighting_mood":"temple lamp-lit","color_palette":["sapphire blue","lamp-flame amber","lotus pink","sandalwood beige","gold leaf"],"tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore painting style: Viṣṇu seated on a lotus pedestal within a temple arch, heavy gold leaf halo and ornate prabhāmaṇḍala; a brāhmaṇa offers a single leaf on a silver plate, with miniature yajña-kuṇḍas rendered as faint motifs in the border; rich reds and greens, gem-studded ornaments, traditional South Indian iconography, crisp symmetry.","pahari_prompt":"Pahari miniature style: intimate shrine scene with delicate brushwork; the devotee offers one leaf, while translucent vignettes of many yajñas float in the sky like clouds; cool palette with lyrical naturalism, refined faces, soft architectural lines, subtle incense haze.","kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala mural style: bold black outlines and natural pigments; Viṣṇu with large expressive eyes, yellow-gold body tones and green-red garments; the single leaf emphasized in the devotee’s hands; stylized temple interior with lamp and conch, rhythmic ornamental borders.","pichwai_prompt":"Pichwai cloth painting style: Viṣṇu-centered altar framed by lotus motifs and floral borders; the single leaf offering highlighted with gold detailing; peacocks and stylized vines in the margins, deep blues and gold, devotional textile symmetry."}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"devotional","suggested_raga":"Yaman","pace":"moderate-narrative","voice_tone":"reverent-soft","sound_elements":["temple bells","soft conch shell","lamp crackle","low drone (tanpura)","silence between pādas"]}
Sandhi Resolution Notes: दलेनैकेन → दलेन एकेन; अगम्यागमने → अगम्य-आगमने; चैव → च एव.
FAQs
It elevates a simple devotional offering—“a single leaf”—as capable of yielding the merit traditionally attributed to vast sacrificial rituals, emphasizing inner devotion and the potency of small sincere acts.
Agamya-āgamana literally means “approaching the unapproachable,” a traditional euphemism for illicit sexual approach or forbidden relations; the verse frames the leaf-offering as having expiatory power even for such grave sin.
The verse implies that sincere religious practice can transform one’s moral condition, but it also indirectly warns that grave ethical breaches exist (“declared as sin”) and should not be normalized—atonement is presented as a remedial path, not a license.