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Shloka 48

Adhyaya 3The Dharmapakshis’ Past-Life Curse and Indra’s Test of Truthfulness

न यज्ञैर्दक्षिणावद्भिस्तत् पुण्यं प्राप्यते महत् ।

कर्मणान्येन वा विप्रैर्यत् सत्यपरिपालनात् ॥

na yajñair dakṣiṇāvadbhis tat puṇyaṃ prāpyate mahat |

karmaṇānyena vā viprair yat satyaparipālanāt ||

บุญอันยิ่งใหญ่นั้นมิได้บรรลุด้วยยัญที่ประกอบพร้อมทักษิณา หรือด้วยกิจอื่นใดที่พราหมณ์กระทำ เทียบเท่ากับบุญที่ได้จากการธำรงสัจจะอย่างมั่นคง

nanot
na:
Pratiṣedha (प्रतिषेध)
TypeIndeclinable
Rootna (अव्यय)
FormNegation particle (निषेध)
yajñaiḥby sacrifices
yajñaiḥ:
Karaṇa (करण)
TypeNoun
Rootyajña (प्रातिपदिक)
FormMasculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Instrumental (3rd/तृतीया), Plural (बहुवचन)
dakṣiṇāvadbhiḥwith priestly gifts
dakṣiṇāvadbhiḥ:
Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
TypeAdjective
Rootdakṣiṇāvat (प्रातिपदिक)
FormAdjective ‘having fees/gifts’; Masculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Instrumental (3rd/तृतीया), Plural (बहुवचन); qualifying ‘yajñaiḥ’
tatthat
tat:
Viśeṣya (विशेष्य)
TypeNoun
Roottad (प्रातिपदिक)
FormDemonstrative pronoun; Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Nominative/Accusative (1st/2nd), Singular (एकवचन)
puṇyammerit
puṇyam:
Karma (कर्म)
TypeNoun
Rootpuṇya (प्रातिपदिक)
FormNeuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Nominative/Accusative (1st/2nd), Singular (एकवचन)
prāpyateis obtained
prāpyate:
Kriyā (क्रिया)
TypeVerb
Rootpra-√āp (धातु)
FormLaṭ (लट्) / Present, Ātmanepada (आत्मनेपद), 3rd person (प्रथमपुरुष), Singular (एकवचन); passive sense ‘is obtained’
mahatgreat
mahat:
Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
TypeAdjective
Rootmahat (प्रातिपदिक)
FormNeuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Nominative/Accusative (1st/2nd), Singular (एकवचन); qualifying ‘puṇyam’
karmaṇāby an act
karmaṇā:
Karaṇa (करण)
TypeNoun
Rootkarman (प्रातिपदिक)
FormNeuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Instrumental (3rd/तृतीया), Singular (एकवचन)
anyenaby any other (act)
anyena:
Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण)
TypeAdjective
Rootanya (प्रातिपदिक)
FormNeuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Instrumental (3rd/तृतीया), Singular (एकवचन); qualifying ‘karmaṇā’
or
:
Vikalpa (विकल्प)
TypeIndeclinable
Rootvā (अव्यय)
FormDisjunctive particle (विकल्प)
vipraiḥby Brahmins
vipraiḥ:
Karaṇa/Kartṛ (करण/कर्तृ)
TypeNoun
Rootvipra (प्रातिपदिक)
FormMasculine (पुंलिङ्ग), Instrumental (3rd/तृतीया), Plural (बहुवचन)
yatwhich
yat:
Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
TypeNoun
Rootyad (प्रातिपदिक)
FormRelative pronoun; Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Nominative/Accusative (1st/2nd), Singular (एकवचन); refers to ‘tat puṇyam’
satyatruth, promise
satya:
Upapada (उपपद)
TypeNoun
Rootsatya (प्रातिपदik)
FormNeuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), stem used in compound
paripālanātfrom keeping (one’s) truth
paripālanāt:
Hetu/Apādāna (हेतु/अपादान)
TypeNoun
Rootpari-√pāl (धातु) + lyuṭ (ल्युट्)
FormAction noun (भाववाचक) with lyuṭ; Neuter (नपुंसकलिङ्ग), Ablative (5th/पञ्चमी), Singular (एकवचन); ‘from/through the observance’
Not specified in the provided input (likely within an instructional discourse of the Purana’s narrative frame).

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

DharmaSatya (truthfulness)Ethics over ritualismKarma and merit (puṇya)

FAQs

Truthfulness (satya) is presented as a higher, more potent source of puṇya than even well-endowed sacrificial ritual. The verse critiques mere ritual achievement—especially when measured by offerings and fees—and elevates integrity and fidelity to truth as the decisive foundation of dharma.

This verse aligns most closely with Dharma/Ācāra instruction rather than the five cosmological-historical markers. Within Pancalakṣaṇa mapping, it is ancillary ethical teaching (not sarga/pratisarga/vaṃśa/manvantara/vaṃśānucarita), commonly embedded in Purāṇas to guide conduct alongside narrative and chronology.

Esoterically, ‘satya-paripālana’ implies alignment of speech, intention, and action with reality (ṛta/satya). Such alignment is treated as an inner yajña: the ‘offering’ is the ego’s impulse to distort, and the ‘dakṣiṇā’ is self-restraint. The verse thus points to an internalized sacrificial model where moral truth becomes the highest oblation.