Markandeya Purana — Adhyaya 57, Shloka 3

Adhyaya 57 — The Ninefold Divisions of Bharata: Mountains, Rivers, and Peoples

Sanskrit

न खल्वन्यत्र मर्त्यानां भूमौ कर्म विधीयते ।

तस्माद्विस्तरशो ब्रह्मन् ! ममैदद्भारतं वद ॥

Transliteration

na khalv anyatra martyānāṃ bhūmau karma vidhīyate / tasmād vistaraśo brahman! mamaitad bhārataṃ vada

Translation

ਸੱਚਮੁੱਚ ਧਰਤੀ ਉੱਤੇ ਹੋਰ ਕਿਤੇ ਮਰਤਿਆਂ ਲਈ ਕਰਮ (ਮਾਰਗ ਰੂਪ) ਵਿਧੀ ਨਾਲ ਨਿਯਤ ਨਹੀਂ ਕੀਤਾ ਗਿਆ। ਇਸ ਲਈ, ਹੇ ਬ੍ਰਾਹਮਣ, ਮੈਨੂੰ ਇਸ ਭਾਰਤ ਦਾ ਵਿਸਥਾਰ ਨਾਲ ਵਰਣਨ ਦੱਸੋ।

Word by Word

• na: not
• na: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/negation)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: na (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya; negation

• khalu: indeed
• khalu: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: khalu (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya; emphatic particle (खलु)

• anyatra: elsewhere
• anyatra: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण/locative sense)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: anyatra (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya; adverb of place

• martyānām: of mortals
• martyānām: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध/genitive)
• Type: Noun
• Root: martya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Genitive (6th/षष्ठी), Plural

• bhūmau: on earth
• bhūmau: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhūmi (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine, Locative (7th/सप्तमी), Singular

• karma: action/ritual duty
• karma: Karta (कर्ता/grammatical subject in passive)
• Type: Noun
• Root: karman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular; subject in passive

• vidhīyate: is enjoined / is prescribed
• vidhīyate: Kriyā (क्रिया/predicate)
• Type: Verb
• Root: vi-√dhā (धातु)
• Form: Laṭ (लट्, Present), Ātmanepada, 3rd Person, Singular; passive sense (कर्मणि)

• tasmāt: therefore
• tasmāt: Hetu/Apādāna (हेतु/अपादान: therefore/from that)
• Type: Noun
• Root: tad (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter/Masculine, Ablative (5th/पञ्चमी), Singular; pronominal

• vistaraśaḥ: in detail
• vistaraśaḥ: Kriyā-viśeṣaṇa (क्रियाविशेषण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: vistaraśas (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya; adverb (विस्तरशः)

• brahman: O Brahmin (sage)
• brahman: Sambodhana (सम्बोधन)
• Type: Noun
• Root: brahman (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Vocative (8th/सम्बोधन), Singular

• mama: to me / for me
• mama: Sampradāna (सम्प्रदान/beneficiary)
• Type: Noun
• Root: asmad (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Genitive (6th/षष्ठी), Singular; 1st-person pronoun

• etat: this
• etat: Karma (कर्म/object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: etad (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular; demonstrative

• bhāratam: Bhārata (land)
• bhāratam: Karma (कर्म/object)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhārata (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter, Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular

• vada: tell/speak
• vada: Kriyā (क्रिया/predicate)
• Type: Verb
• Root: √vad (धातु)
• Form: Loṭ (लोट्, Imperative), Parasmaipada, 2nd Person (मध्यम-पुरुष), Singular

Speakers

• Krausṭuki to Mārkaṇḍeya

Verse Rasa

{ "primaryRasa": "jijnasa", "secondaryRasa": "shanta", "rasaIntensity": 0, "emotionalArcPosition": "", "moodDescriptors": [] }

Key Themes

• Dharma and prescription
• Bhāratavarṣa
• Soteriology (path to mokṣa)
• Dialogue inquiry

FAQs

What is the philosophical or ethical takeaway?

The verse asserts the special status of human life in Bhārata as a realm of injunction (vidhi)—where dharma is taught, chosen, and practiced—making it the strategic locus for spiritual progress.

How does this fit the Pancalakṣaṇa (5 characteristics)?

A bridge from cosmography to dharma-oriented exposition; still framed as world-description ('Sarga') with an explicit emphasis on karmic injunction.

What is the esoteric significance?

‘Vidhi’ implies structured pathways: the cosmos is not merely spatial but pedagogical—Bhārata functions as a ‘school’ where freedom and law together enable transformation.