Adhyaya 14 — The Messenger of Yama Explains Karmic Retribution and the Causes of Naraka Torments
गावोऽग्निर्जननी विप्रोज्येष्ठभ्राता पिता स्वसा ।
जामयो गुरवो वृद्धा यैः स्पृष्टास्तु पदा नृभिः ॥
gāvo 'gnir jananī vipro jyeṣṭha-bhrātā pitā svasā /
jāmayo guravo vṛddhā yaiḥ spṛṣṭās tu padā nṛbhiḥ
Yaong mga lalaking sumipa (humipo gamit ang paa) sa mga baka, sa apoy, sa ina, sa isang brāhmaṇa, sa nakatatandang kapatid na lalaki, sa ama, sa kapatid na babae, sa mga babaeng kamag-anak sa pamamagitan ng pag-aasawa, sa mga guro, at sa matatanda—sa kanila’y susunod ang mabibigat na bunga.
{ "primaryRasa": "dharma", "secondaryRasa": "raudra", "rasaIntensity": 0, "emotionalArcPosition": "", "moodDescriptors": [] }
Reverence (satkāra) toward sanctified beings and dharma-pillars—parents, teachers, elders, brāhmaṇas, cows, and fire—is non-negotiable in the Purāṇic ethic. Physical contempt (kicking) is treated as a direct violation of ṛta/dharma, producing severe karmic retribution.
Primarily ‘Vamśānucarita/Dharma’ material (ethical conduct and its fruits), not sarga/pratisarga. It functions as didactic naraka-varṇana (hell-description) used to reinforce varṇāśrama-dharma.
The ‘foot’ symbolizes egoic dominance and disrespect. To place it upon the sacred (agni, go, guru, mātṛ) is to invert the proper hierarchy of consciousness; the ensuing bondage imagery in later verses mirrors self-forged inner bondage.