Shloka 24
The Tale of the Five Pretas and the Glory of Puṣkara & the Eastern Sarasvatī
सूचिता बहवोऽनेन विप्राश्चान्नाद्यकांक्षिणः । एतत्कारणमुद्दिश्य सूचीमुखाभिधो मतः
sūcitā bahavo'nena viprāścānnādyakāṃkṣiṇaḥ | etatkāraṇamuddiśya sūcīmukhābhidho mataḥ
Dengan perbuatan ini, ramai brāhmaṇa yang menginginkan makanan dan bekalan telah ditunjuk (ditandai). Atas sebab itu, dia dikenali sebagai ‘Sūcīmukha’ (bermulut seperti jarum).
Unspecified (narrative voice within Sṛṣṭi-khaṇḍa context)
Concept: Misuse of one’s agency around food, begging, and hospitality leads to moral exposure and a degrading identity; dharma protects both giver and receiver when aligned with compassion and restraint.
Application: Treat requests for help with discernment and kindness; avoid exploiting others’ hunger; cultivate honest livelihood and generosity without humiliation.
Primary Rasa: bibhatsa
Secondary Rasa: karuna
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"A tense village threshold scene: hungry brāhmaṇas stand with begging bowls while a furtive figure points them out with a sharp, needle-like gesture, his face subtly elongated as if becoming ‘needle-mouthed.’ The air feels morally charged—charity and hunger are present, yet compassion is replaced by exposure and ridicule.","primary_figures":["hungry brāhmaṇas","a furtive householder/figure becoming Sūcīmukha"],"setting":"mud-plastered homes at the edge of a settlement; a small courtyard with grain baskets, a low doorway, and a dusty path where alms are sought","lighting_mood":"forest dappled","color_palette":["dusty ochre","ash gray","indigo shadow","brass-gold","pale cotton white"],"tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore painting style: a moral-etiology tableau at a village doorway—hungry brāhmaṇas with kamaṇḍalu and pātra, a guilty figure with a subtly needle-like mouth pointing them out; gold leaf highlights on vessels and sacred threads, rich maroon and emerald borders, gem-studded ornaments on the brāhmaṇas’ minimal jewelry, traditional South Indian iconographic faces with expressive eyes conveying shame and hunger.","pahari_prompt":"Pahari miniature style: delicate brushwork showing a small hamlet courtyard, thin hungry brāhmaṇas in white with soft pink shawls, a sly figure gesturing with a needle-like profile; cool shadows, lyrical naturalism, refined facial features, distant trees and low hills, fine linework for sacred threads and begging bowls.","kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala mural style: bold black outlines and flat natural pigments—brāhmaṇas with pronounced eyes and sacred threads, the culprit with an exaggerated narrow mouth; temple-wall aesthetic even in a domestic scene, red-yellow-green palette with rhythmic decorative borders and stylized foliage.","pichwai_prompt":"Pichwai cloth painting style: symbolic moral scene framed by lotus and vine borders—brāhmaṇas as devotional recipients of anna, the ‘needle-mouthed’ figure rendered as a cautionary character; intricate floral motifs, deep indigo ground with gold detailing, small peacocks at the border to heighten the didactic, devotional atmosphere."}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"narrative","suggested_raga":"Desh","pace":"moderate-narrative","voice_tone":"authoritative","sound_elements":["soft temple bells","distant village ambience","begging bowl clink","brief silence between pādas"]}
Sandhi Resolution Notes: bahavo'nena → bahavaḥ anena; viprāścānnādya- → viprāḥ ca annādya-; etatkāraṇamuddiśya → etat kāraṇam uddiśya; sūcīmukhābhidho → sūcīmukha-abhidhaḥ.
FAQs
The verse gives an etymological explanation: because he “pointed out/indicated” (sūcita) many Brahmins seeking food, he is regarded as bearing the name Sūcīmukha—one whose ‘mouth/face’ is like a ‘needle,’ i.e., one who indicates or points.
It highlights concern with providing food/support (annādya) to Brahmins and frames a person’s epithet as arising from a defining action connected to directing or arranging such provision.
Not directly. It is primarily an explanatory/etymological line in the Sṛṣṭi-khaṇḍa narrative, focused on naming and the act of indicating those in need of food.