Agni Purana — Dharma-shastra, Shloka 14
Duties outside the Varṇa Order (वर्णेतरधर्माः) — Agni Purana, Chapter 151
चण्डालकर्म निर्दिष्टं बध्यानां घातनं तथा स्त्रीजीवन्तु तद्रक्षाप्रोक्तं वैदेहकस्य च
caṇḍālakarma nirdiṣṭaṃ badhyānāṃ ghātanaṃ tathā strījīvantu tadrakṣāproktaṃ vaidehakasya ca
ଚଣ୍ଡାଳର କର୍ମ ଭାବେ ମୃତ୍ୟୁଦଣ୍ଡଯୋଗ୍ୟ ଦଣ୍ଡିତମାନଙ୍କ ଘାତନ ନିର୍ଦ୍ଦିଷ୍ଟ। ଏବଂ ଜୀବିକାର୍ଥେ ଜୀବନ୍ତୀ ନାରୀମାନଙ୍କ ରକ୍ଷା କରିବାକୁ ବୈଦେହକର କର୍ତ୍ତବ୍ୟ କୁହାଯାଇଛି।
Lord Agni (in instruction to the sage Vasiṣṭha, in the usual Agni Purāṇa dialogue frame)
Vidya Category: {"primary_vidya":"Dharmashastra","secondary_vidya":"Arthashastra","practical_application":"Assigns customary occupations and state-linked duties (executioner; protection/guarding of women) to specific groups; relevant to rajadharma administration, policing, and penal implementation in the text’s framework.","sutra_style":true}
Encyclopedic Reference: {"reference_type":"Description","entry_title":"Occupational duties: Caṇḍāla as executioner; Vaidehaka as protector/guard","lookup_keywords":["Caṇḍāla karma","executioner","badhya-ghātana","Vaidehaka","strī-rakṣā"],"quick_summary":"Specifies state-facing roles: Caṇḍāla executes the condemned; Vaidehaka is tasked with guarding/protecting women—an occupational mapping used in rajadharma and vyavahāra contexts."}
Weapon Type: Sword
Concept: Rajadharma distributes social functions to maintain order: punishment of criminals and protection of vulnerable persons are institutional duties.
Application: Frames governance: execution of lawful sentences and organized protection/guarding as recognized civic functions.
Khanda Section: Rajadharma & Vyavahara (Statecraft, occupations, and penal duties)
Primary Rasa: shanta
Secondary Rasa: bhayanaka
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"Two-part civic tableau: (1) a state execution ground with an executioner receiving an order tablet for a condemned criminal; (2) a guarded women’s quarter/market route where a protector escorts women safely.","kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala mural, split-panel narrative: left shows a stern execution scene with minimal violence, right shows a guard escorting women near a palace/market, bold outlines, symbolic gestures, temple-wall storytelling style.","tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore painting, royal court issuing a death sentence order with gold-leaf accents, and a second vignette of a richly dressed guard at a women’s doorway, ornate pillars and arch, saturated colors.","mysore_prompt":"Mysore painting, administrative scene with a clerk handing a warrant, executioner standing with sheathed sword; separate scene of protective escort, fine detailing and calm didactic tone.","mughal_miniature_prompt":"Mughal miniature, court justice scene in a pavilion with officials, executioner at the margin; companion scene of street escort with architectural depth, delicate faces, patterned textiles."}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"epic","suggested_raga":"Todi","pace":"medium","voice_tone":"instructional"}
Sandhi Resolution Notes: स्त्रीजीवन्तु = स्त्रीजीवन् + तु; तद्रक्षाप्रोक्तं = तत् + रक्षा + प्रोक्तम्.
Related Themes: Agni Purana 151 (rajadharma/vyavahāra occupational allocations)
FAQs
It conveys practical administrative knowledge under Rajadharma: assigning specific occupational/penal duties—execution of condemned persons and the safeguarding/protection duty attributed to the Vaidehaka.
Beyond theology, the Agni Purana catalogs governance and social administration by listing professional roles and state functions (penal execution and protective duties), illustrating its wide-ranging, encyclopedic coverage of law and polity.
By prescribing duties (svadharma) for social groups, the text frames orderly governance and role-based conduct as a means to uphold dharma; fulfilling one’s assigned duty is treated as dharmically stabilizing and karmically consequential.