Agni Purana — Raja-dharma, Shloka 30
Mantra-śakti, Dūta-Carā (Envoys & Spies), Vyasana (Calamities), and the Sapta-Upāya of Nīti
उपरुद्धं परिक्षिप्तममानितविमानितं संस्तम्भयतीत्यादिः, मित्रात्तद्व्यसनाद्धरेदित्यन्तः पाठः छपुअतके नास्ति अभूतं व्याधितं श्रान्तं दूरायातन्नवागतं
uparuddhaṃ parikṣiptamamānitavimānitaṃ saṃstambhayatītyādiḥ, mitrāttadvyasanāddharedityantaḥ pāṭhaḥ chapuatake nāsti abhūtaṃ vyādhitaṃ śrāntaṃ dūrāyātannavāgataṃ
उपरुद्धं परिक्षिप्तममानितविमानितं संस्तम्भयतीत्यादिः; मित्रात्तद्व्यसनाद्धरेदित्यन्तः पाठः छपुअतके नास्ति। अभूतं व्याधितं श्रान्तं दूरायातं नवागतं च सहायेत्।
Lord Agni (traditionally narrating purāṇic instruction to Vasiṣṭha)
Vidya Category: {"primary_vidya":"Dharmashastra","secondary_vidya":"Arthashastra","practical_application":"Social protection protocol: stabilize and assist persons facing obstruction, humiliation, poverty, illness, fatigue, long travel, or new arrival; mobilize allies/friends for rescue and reintegration.","sutra_style":false}
Encyclopedic Reference: {"reference_type":"Procedure","entry_title":"Mitra-dharma: Supporting the Distressed and Dependent","lookup_keywords":["mitra","upadrava","sahayya","vyadhita","navagata"],"quick_summary":"One should steady those who are obstructed or humiliated and provide aid to the poor, sick, exhausted, travelers, and newcomers. Friendship functions as a practical instrument of rescue and relief."}
Concept: Mitra-dharma and rajadharma converge in protecting the vulnerable; restoring dignity and stability is itself righteous action.
Application: Establish guest-houses, traveler aid, medical help, and grievance redress; encourage networks of allies to rescue those in crisis.
Khanda Section: Rajadharma / Mitra-niti (Political Ethics: Protection and Relief for Dependents)
Primary Rasa: karuna
Secondary Rasa: shanta
Type: Kingdom
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"A benefactor steadies a humiliated person, gives food to the poor, tends a sick man, supports an exhausted traveler, and welcomes a newcomer at the city gate; a friend intervenes to rescue someone hemmed in.","kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala mural, sequential vignettes: city gate welcome to navagata, healer attending vyadhita, attendants offering water to shranta traveler, a friend lifting the bowed head of a humiliated person, bold outlines and warm palette.","tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore painting, central figure of a noble patron with gold halo distributing alms and offering shelter, side panels showing sickbed care and traveler reception, heavy gold work on ornaments and architectural frames.","mysore_prompt":"Mysore painting, instructional welfare tableau with labeled groups (daridra, vyadhita, shranta, doorayata, navagata), refined linework and calm expressions emphasizing dharmic duty.","mughal_miniature_prompt":"Mughal miniature, bustling caravanserai scene: a newcomer greeted, a weary traveler given sherbet, a physician examining a patient, a patron mediating a dispute of insult, detailed textiles and urban architecture."}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"devotional","suggested_raga":"Madhyamavati","pace":"slow","voice_tone":"contemplative"}
Sandhi Resolution Notes: parikṣiptam amānitavimānitaṃ → amānita-vimānitaṃ (dvandva); saṃstambhayatītyādiḥ → saṃstambhayati + iti + ādiḥ; mitrāt tadvyasanād dhared → mitrāt + tad-vyasanāt + haret (final -t/-d before dh-); dūrāyātannavāgataṃ → dūra-āyātam + nava-āgatam.
Related Themes: Agni Purana Rajadharma sections on charity, protection of subjects, and conduct toward dependents; Agni Purana passages on dana and atithi (if present)
FAQs
It imparts nīti-vidyā (political and social ethics): the practical duty to stabilize and assist those who are obstructed, insulted, sick, exhausted, or newly arrived—especially by mobilizing friendly networks to remove them from calamity.
Alongside ritual and theology, the Agni Purana also compiles governance and social conduct; this verse functions like a concise manual of welfare-and-relief obligations (guest-care, crisis support, and alliance-based rescue).
Supporting the distressed and honoring guests/newcomers is treated as dharma; such aid reduces harm (hiṃsā) and accrues puṇya by protecting life, dignity, and social order.