Narada Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 58
Hari-nāma Mahimā and Caraṇāmṛta: The Redemption of the Hunter Gulika
Uttaṅka Itihāsa
अहो विधिः पापशता कुलं मां किं सृष्टवान्पापतरं च शश्वत् । कथं च यत्पापफलं हि भोक्ष्ये कियत्सु जन्मस्वहमुग्रकर्मा ॥ ५८ ॥
aho vidhiḥ pāpaśatā kulaṃ māṃ kiṃ sṛṣṭavānpāpataraṃ ca śaśvat | kathaṃ ca yatpāpaphalaṃ hi bhokṣye kiyatsu janmasvahamugrakarmā || 58 ||
அய்யோ, என்ன விதி! நூற்றுக் கணக்கான பாவங்கள் நிறைந்த குலத்தில் என்னை ஏன் படைத்தது, மேலும் எப்போதும் இன்னும் பாவியாகவே ஏன் ஆக்கியது? நான்—கொடுஞ்செயல்கள் செய்தவன்—பாவப்பலனை எவ்வாறு அனுபவிப்பேன், எத்தனை பிறவிகள் வரை?
Narada (lamenting in a teaching-dialogue context with the Sanatkumara tradition)
Vrata: none
Primary Rasa: karuna
Secondary Rasa: bhayanaka
FAQs
This verse voices intense remorse and karmic awareness: the speaker recognizes that sinful actions (ugra-karma) inevitably yield pāpa-phala that must be experienced across births, prompting a turn toward purification and liberation-oriented dharma.
While not naming bhakti directly, the despair over pāpa-phala is the classic inner catalyst for surrender—seeking refuge in higher guidance and (in Narada Purana’s wider teaching) turning to Vishnu-bhakti and dharmic practice as the means to cleanse sin and redirect one’s destiny.
No specific Vedanga (like Vyākaraṇa, Jyotiṣa, or Kalpa) is taught in this verse; the practical takeaway is ethical causality—actions produce results—forming the foundation upon which Kalpa (ritual/prāyaścitta procedure) and Dharmaśāstra-style discipline operate in later instruction.