Shloka 24
Right Conduct, Offenses Against Brāhmaṇas, Truthfulness, and the Greatness of the Cow
Go-Māhātmya
पक्षवातेन चांगानि प्रकंपंते सदैव हि । मातरं पितरं विप्रं स्नातकं च तपस्विनम्
pakṣavātena cāṃgāni prakaṃpaṃte sadaiva hi | mātaraṃ pitaraṃ vipraṃ snātakaṃ ca tapasvinam
പക്ഷവാതദോഷം മൂലം അവന്റെ അവയവങ്ങൾ എപ്പോഴും വിറയ്ക്കുന്നു; മാതാപിതാക്കളെയും ബ്രാഹ്മണനെയും സ്നാതകനെയും തപസ്വിയെയും പീഡിപ്പിക്കുകയോ അപമാനിക്കുകയോ ചെയ്യുന്നവന് ഇത്തരമൊരു ഫലം ലഭിക്കുന്നു।
Unspecified (context-dependent within Sṛṣṭikhaṇḍa Adhyaya 48; likely a narrator in a dharma/karma teaching passage)
Concept: Disrespect toward parents and venerable spiritual persons fractures one’s stability; reverence (guru-mātṛ-pitṛ-bhakti) sustains inner and outer steadiness.
Application: Daily acts of respect: serve parents/elders, speak gently to teachers, support ascetics and sincere students; cultivate gratitude to reduce reactive speech and behavior.
Primary Rasa: karuna
Secondary Rasa: bhayanaka
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"A figure stands with trembling limbs, hands half-raised in regret, while behind him appear luminous silhouettes of mother, father, a brāhmaṇa, a snātaka with sacred thread and water-pot, and an ascetic with matted hair. The tremor is painted like ripples through the body, as if dharma itself has been shaken by disrespect.","primary_figures":["a remorseful offender","mother","father","brāhmaṇa","snātaka (graduate of Vedic study)","tapasvin (ascetic)"],"setting":"a simple hermitage edge with a small yajña-kuṇḍa and a household courtyard merging symbolically","lighting_mood":"temple lamp-lit with a stern, instructive glow","color_palette":["lamp-flame amber","earth brown","ivory white","deep maroon","sage green"],"tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore painting style: central trembling figure with expressive posture, surrounded by haloed elders—mother and father seated, a brāhmaṇa and snātaka holding kamaṇḍalu and scripture, an ascetic with jaṭā; gold leaf halos and ornate borders, rich reds/greens, traditional iconographic symmetry conveying moral gravity.","pahari_prompt":"Pahari miniature style: delicate depiction of a hermitage scene, elders calm and luminous, the offender shown with subtle shaking lines; cool natural palette, refined faces, small details like sacred thread, water-pot, and leaf hut, lyrical moral storytelling.","kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala mural style: bold outlines, stylized eyes, the trembling indicated by repeated contour lines; elders arranged in a semi-circle like a moral mandala, pigments of red/yellow/green with black accents, temple-wall didactic clarity.","pichwai_prompt":"Pichwai cloth painting style: framed by floral and tulasi motifs, a devotional-moral tableau where elders appear as living ‘devas’ around the central figure; deep blue background with gold highlights, intricate borders, peacocks and lotuses symbolizing conscience and purity."}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"dramatic","suggested_raga":"Durga","pace":"moderate-narrative","voice_tone":"authoritative","sound_elements":["soft mridanga strokes","temple bell punctuations","wind through trees at an āśrama","brief silence between clauses"]}
Sandhi Resolution Notes: चांगानि→च अङ्गानि; प्रकंपंते→प्रकम्पन्ते (अनुस्वार/वर्तनी भेद); सदैव→सदा एव.
FAQs
It links unethical behavior—especially disrespect toward parents, learned brāhmaṇas, snātakas, and ascetics—with a karmic consequence described as bodily affliction (trembling/paralysis).
A snātaka is a person who has completed prescribed Vedic study and the concluding ritual bath, representing disciplined learning and adherence to dharma.
Reverence and non-harm toward key pillars of dharmic society—parents, spiritual teachers/priests, disciplined students, and ascetics—are presented as essential, with serious consequences for violation.