Shloka 73
Pitṛ-tīrtha Context: Marks of Sin, Śrāddha Discipline, and Karmic Ripening
in Yayāti’s Narrative
यः पीडामाश्रमस्थानामाचरेदल्पिकामपि । तद्भृत्यपरिवर्गस्य पशुधान्यवनस्य च
yaḥ pīḍāmāśramasthānāmācaredalpikāmapi | tadbhṛtyaparivargasya paśudhānyavanasya ca
ผู้ใดก่อความเดือดร้อนแม้เพียงเล็กน้อยแก่ผู้พำนักในอาศรม ผู้นั้นย่อมนำความวิบัติมาสู่บริวารและผู้พึ่งพิงของตน ตลอดจนโคสัตว์ ธัญญาหาร และป่าไม้ของตนด้วย
Uncertain from single-verse context (likely within a Pulastya–Bhīṣma discourse typical of Bhūmi-khaṇḍa moral instruction).
Concept: Violence against the righteous rebounds: harming āśrama-dwellers triggers cascading loss in one’s own household economy and environment.
Application: Avoid exploiting spiritual communities; support monasteries/āśrams ethically; treat caretakers, workers, animals, and land as interconnected—harm to one harms all.
Primary Rasa: raudra
Secondary Rasa: karuna
Type: forest
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"A forest hermitage alive with gentle order—cows grazing, granaries, and fruit trees—contrasted with a single aggressor disturbing the peace. In the background, a symbolic karmic mirror shows his own home and fields withering, servants scattering, and forests thinning, illustrating immediate moral causality.","primary_figures":["hermitage sages","a would-be aggressor","hermitage attendants","cows and deer"],"setting":"forest āśrama with thatched huts, yajña-vedi, granary, cattle pen, and surrounding woodland","lighting_mood":"divine radiance with a cautionary shadow overlay","color_palette":["forest green","earth brown","saffron ochre","smoke blue","sunlit gold"],"tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore painting style: a tranquil āśrama with sages near a small vedi, gold leaf on the sacred fire and halos, a dark-toned aggressor at the edge, and a secondary vignette panel showing his household ruin, rich reds/greens with ornate borders featuring tulasi-like floral scrollwork (without making tulasi central).","pahari_prompt":"Pahari miniature style: detailed forest textures, gentle animals, sages with refined faces, a narrative split-scene showing cause and effect, cool greens and blues with warm saffron accents, lyrical yet morally pointed composition.","kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala mural style: bold outlines of sages and animals, stylized trees, a clear didactic layout with a karmic consequence panel, natural pigments emphasizing green and ochre, expressive eyes conveying warning and compassion.","pichwai_prompt":"Pichwai cloth painting style: āśrama scene framed by intricate floral borders, symbolic motifs of grain and cattle, deep blue background with gold highlights, peacocks and lotuses at corners, narrative clarity with decorative richness."}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"narrative","suggested_raga":"Desh","pace":"moderate-narrative","voice_tone":"authoritative","sound_elements":["flowing water (nearby stream)","forest birds","soft conch (distant)","rustle of leaves"]}
Sandhi Resolution Notes: पीडाम् + आश्रमस्थानाम् → पीडामाश्रमस्थानाम् (स्वर-सन्धि); आश्रम+स्थान (तत्पुरुष); आचरेत् + अल्पिकाम् → आचरेदल्पिकाम् (व्यञ्जन-सन्धि); अल्पिकाम् + अपि → अल्पिकामपि (स्वर-सन्धि); तद् + भृत्यपरिवर्गस्य → तद्भृत्यपरिवर्गस्य (व्यञ्जन-सन्धि); पशु+धान्य+वन (समाहार-द्वन्द्व)
FAQs
It teaches that harming ascetics or āśrama-residents is a serious adharma whose negative consequences rebound upon the perpetrator’s own household and livelihood.
They represent the core supports of worldly life—dependents and resources—indicating that violence toward sacred communities disrupts one’s social stability and material well-being.
Yes—its framing suggests a karmic retribution: even minor cruelty toward the protected (āśrama-dwellers) results in broader harm to one’s associated people and assets.