Shloka 112

Purusha-Strī-Lakṣaṇa (Samudrika-śāstra): Marks of Kingship, Wealth, Longevity, and Conduct

Devanagari script

कनिष्ठिकानामिका वा यस्या न स्पृशते महीम् / अङ्गुष्ठं वा गतातीत्य तर्जनी कुलटा च सा

Transliteration

kaniṣṭhikānāmikā vā yasyā na spṛśate mahīm / aṅguṣṭhaṃ vā gatātītya tarjanī kulaṭā ca sā

Translation

မိန်းမတစ်ဦး၏ လက်ချောင်းသေးနှင့် လက်မောင်းချောင်း (လက်စွပ်ချောင်း) တို့သည် မြေကို မထိနိုင်ခြင်း၊ သို့မဟုတ် လက်ညှိုးသည် လက်မထက် ကျော်လွန်နေခြင်းရှိလျှင်—ထိုမိန်းမကို ကုလဋာ (kulaṭā) ဟူသော လွတ်လပ်ကာမစိတ်ရှိသူဟု သတ်မှတ်ကြသည်။

Word by Word

• कनिष्ठिका-नामिका: the little finger and the ring finger
• कनिष्ठिका-नामिका: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कनिष्ठिका (प्रातिपदिक) + नामिका (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; द्वन्द्वः (समाहार/इतरेतर) ‘कनिष्ठिका च नामिका च’

• वा: or
• वा: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: वा (अव्यय)
• Form: विकल्प-अव्ययम् (disjunctive particle)

• यस्याः: of whom / whose
• यस्याः: Shashthi-sambandha (Genitive/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Noun
• Root: यद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, षष्ठी (6th), एकवचन; सम्बन्धे

• न: not
• न: Pratishedha (Negation/निषेध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: न (अव्यय)
• Form: निषेध-अव्ययम् (negation)

• स्पृशते: touches
• स्पृशते: Kriya (Action/क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: स्पृश् (धातु)
• Form: लट् (Present), प्रथमपुरुष, एकवचन; आत्मनेपदम्

• महीम्: the ground
• महीम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: मही (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन

• अङ्गुष्ठम्: the thumb
• अङ्गुष्ठम्: Karma (Object/कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अङ्गुष्ठ (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग, द्वितीया (2nd), एकवचन

• वा: or
• वा: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: वा (अव्यय)
• Form: विकल्प-अव्ययम्

• गता: having gone
• गता: Visheshana (Qualifier/विशेषण)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: गम् (धातु) → गत (कृदन्त)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; क्त-प्रत्ययान्त; (तर्जनी इत्यस्य) विशेषणम्

• अतीत्य: having passed beyond
• अतीत्य: Purvakala (Prior action/पूर्वकाल)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: अति + इ (धातु) → अतीत्य (क्त्वान्त-अव्यय)
• Form: क्त्वान्त-अव्ययम् (gerund) ‘अतिक्रम्य’

• तर्जनी: the index finger
• तर्जनी: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तर्जनी (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन

• कुलटा: unchaste woman
• कुलटा: Predicate (Vidheya/विधेय)
• Type: Noun
• Root: कुलटा (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन; विधेय-नाम (predicate noun)

• च: and
• च: Sambandha (Connector/सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: समुच्चय-अव्ययम्

• सा: she
• सा: Karta (Subject/कर्ता)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तद् (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग, प्रथमा (1st), एकवचन

Speaker

Lord Vishnu (speaking to Garuda/Vinatā-putra)

Philosophical Teaching

Concept: Physical markers are used to infer character and sexual conduct, aligning with a prescriptive social ethic.

Vedantic Theme: Guṇa/saṃskāra inference from external signs (a non-Vedāntic but culturally adjacent idea); highlights tension between inner self and social judgment.

Application: Read critically as historical social normativity; in modern use, avoid character judgments from anatomy and uphold dignity and consent-based ethics.

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: bibhatsa

Secondary Rasa: raudra

Cross References

Related Themes: Garuda Purana 1.65.111-113 (women’s bodily marks and inferred outcomes/traits)

FAQs

What is the importance of this topic in Garuda Purana?

This verse appears in the Ācāra (conduct) section, presenting traditional markers used in older dharma-style literature to judge personal character and social propriety.

How does this verse explain the path of the soul?

It does not directly describe the soul’s journey; instead, it frames ethical/social conduct, which the Garuda Purana treats as influencing karmic outcomes.

Practical application of this wisdom today?

Use it as a historical-cultural reference rather than a literal diagnostic; the broader takeaway is to cultivate integrity and restraint, which the text links with dharmic living.