Shloka 112
Rāma’s Meeting with Agastya: Gift-Ethics (Dāna) and the Tale of King Śveta
पूर्णं वर्षशतं चाद्य भोजनं कुत्सितं च मे । क्षयं नाभ्येति तद्विप्र तृप्तिश्चापि ममोत्तमा
pūrṇaṃ varṣaśataṃ cādya bhojanaṃ kutsitaṃ ca me | kṣayaṃ nābhyeti tadvipra tṛptiścāpi mamottamā
โอ้พราหมณ์ แม้บัดนี้เสบียงอาหารอันต่ำทรามของข้าพเจ้ายังไม่ร่อยหรอ ตลอดครบหนึ่งร้อยปี และความอิ่มเอมของข้าพเจ้าก็ยังยอดเยี่ยมยิ่ง
Unspecified (context needed from surrounding verses to identify the speaker reliably)
Concept: Material continuity (undiminished supply, bodily endurance) is not proof of spiritual purity; karmic boons can sustain even flawed habits.
Application: Do not mistake comfort for correctness; evaluate habits by their purity and their effect on clarity, compassion, and devotion.
Primary Rasa: adbhuta
Secondary Rasa: bibhatsa
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"A figure sits beside a seemingly inexhaustible store of coarse, dark food—piled in earthen jars that never empty—while his face shows a troubling contentment. A brāhmaṇa stands nearby, staff in hand, listening with concern as the air shimmers with the uncanny sign of a boon gone morally awry.","primary_figures":["the speaker with inexhaustible food","a brāhmaṇa interlocutor (vipra)"],"setting":"edge of a forest dwelling; earthen granaries, clay pots, a small hut; faint aura suggesting supernatural preservation","lighting_mood":"forest dappled","color_palette":["mud brown","charcoal black","pale ochre","forest green","muted copper"],"tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore painting style: the speaker seated near overflowing jars of dark food, a vipra standing with kamaṇḍalu and staff; gold-leaf used sparingly to show the uncanny ‘undiminished’ boon as a subtle halo around the jars; rich textile reds contrasted with earthy browns, traditional iconographic framing.","pahari_prompt":"Pahari miniature style: quiet moral tableau; delicate rendering of clay pots and leaf shadows; the vipra’s attentive posture; subdued palette with fine linework, gentle hillside background, contemplative mood.","kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala mural style: stylized pots and bold outlines; the vipra and speaker with expressive eyes; warm pigment blocks and rhythmic foliage patterns; temple-wall composition emphasizing the paradox.","pichwai_prompt":"Pichwai cloth painting style: symbolic composition—endless jars at center with floral borders; the vipra at one side; peacocks and lotuses subdued; deep blue ground with copper-gold accents to suggest supernatural continuity."}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"narrative","suggested_raga":"Durga","pace":"moderate-narrative","voice_tone":"authoritative","sound_elements":["rustling leaves","distant owl","clay pot clink","low drone (tanpura-like)"]}
Sandhi Resolution Notes: cādya = ca + adya; nābhyeti = na + abhyeti; tadvipra = tat + vipra; tṛptiścāpi = tṛptiḥ + ca + api; mamottamā = mama + uttamā (vowel sandhi).
FAQs
It states that the speaker’s supply of food will not run out for a hundred years, and that the speaker remains fully satisfied—despite the food being described as ‘kutsita’ (base/impure).
‘Kutsita’ commonly means contemptible, inferior, or impure. In Purāṇic moral contexts it can imply food obtained through blameworthy means or of a degraded quality, contrasted with pure food gained righteously.
The verse addresses a ‘vipra’ (brāhmaṇa), but the speaker’s identity is not explicit in the single shloka provided. The surrounding verses (Adhyaya 36, shlokas 110–115) are needed to attribute the dialogue confidently.