Shloka 41
The Account of Women
Householder Ethics, Fault, Merit, and Govinda-Nāma as Purification
उच्छिष्टनरकं भुक्त्वा मानुषे विधवा भवेत् । यः पुनश्चांत्यजां गच्छेन्म्लेछां वा पुल्कसां नरः
ucchiṣṭanarakaṃ bhuktvā mānuṣe vidhavā bhavet | yaḥ punaścāṃtyajāṃ gacchenmlechāṃ vā pulkasāṃ naraḥ
ഉച്ഛിഷ്ടം എന്ന നരകം അനുഭവിച്ച ശേഷം അവൾ മനുഷ്യജന്മത്തിൽ വിധവയായി ജന്മം എടുക്കുന്നു. കൂടാതെ വീണ്ടും അന്ത്യജ, മ്ലേച്ഛ അല്ലെങ്കിൽ പുൽകസ സ്ത്രീയെ സമീപിക്കുന്ന പുരുഷൻ മഹാപാപഫലത്തിന് അർഹനാകുന്നു.
Narrator/teacher voice within the Purāṇic discourse (exact dialogue pair not specified from the single verse excerpt).
Concept: Sexual/relational transgressions and boundary-violations (especially repeated) lead to severe karmic suffering and socially painful rebirth outcomes.
Application: Practice restraint (brahmacarya/niyama), honor consent and dharmic boundaries, avoid exploitative relationships; seek atonement through confession, corrective conduct, and sustained sādhana.
Primary Rasa: bhayanaka
Secondary Rasa: raudra
Type: celestial_realm
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"A grim allegory of impurity: a dark underworld court labeled ‘Ucchiṣṭa’ in symbolic script, where a veiled widow figure stands in sorrowful silence, her shadow stretching into scenes of boundary-breaking desire. The composition contrasts polluted, broken vessels with a distant, untouched lamp of dharma.","primary_figures":["widow figure (symbolic rebirth)","shadowy Yama-dūtas (optional)","symbolic transgressor (male silhouette)"],"setting":"underworld threshold blending into an earthly street/household scene; ritual vessels and remnants symbolizing ucchiṣṭa","lighting_mood":"lamp-lit with oppressive shadows","color_palette":["soot black","mud brown","dull ochre","deep maroon","faint lamp-gold"],"tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore painting style: widow figure in subdued attire at the edge of a stylized naraka gate, with gold-leaf used for the single dharma-lamp and for ornamental borders; rich reds and greens framing a morally stark scene, traditional iconographic symmetry with symbolic vessels of impurity.","pahari_prompt":"Pahari miniature style: quiet tragedy—widow seated near a dim lamp, with a faint underworld gate in the background; cool muted palette, delicate facial sorrow, minimalism emphasizing karuṇa beneath the warning.","kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala mural style: bold outlines of naraka gate and widow figure, stylized flames and dark clouds; strong pigment blocks, temple-wall narrative clarity, expressive eyes conveying suffering and admonition.","pichwai_prompt":"Pichwai cloth painting style: moral allegory—central lamp of dharma surrounded by a border of broken pots and dark floral motifs; deep indigo and maroon with gold detailing, decorative yet cautionary symbolism."}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"dramatic","suggested_raga":"Bhairavi","pace":"moderate-narrative","voice_tone":"authoritative","sound_elements":["single bell tolls","low drone","wind through empty corridor","silence after key words like naraka"]}
Sandhi Resolution Notes: पुनश्चांत्यजां = पुनः + च + अन्त्यजाम्; गच्छेन्म्लेछां = गच्छेत् + म्लेच्छाम् (त् + म् → न्म्)
FAQs
Ucchiṣṭa-naraka is presented as a specific hell (naraka) where one undergoes suffering as a karmic consequence; the verse uses it to link immoral conduct with post-mortem retribution and an adverse rebirth.
Yes. It frames ethical conduct as causally connected to results: wrongdoing leads to suffering (naraka) and also shapes the conditions of one’s next human birth.
The verse warns against sexual/moral misconduct as defined in its traditional social-religious framework, emphasizing that actions have consequences both after death and in future rebirths.