Narada Purana — Purva Bhaga, Shloka 24
Saṃsāra-duḥkha: Karmic Descent, Garbhavāsa, Life’s Anxieties, Death, and the Call to Jñāna-Bhakti
एवं बालत्वमापन्नो जंतुस्तत्रापि स्वमलमूत्रलित्पदेह आध्यात्मिकादिपीड्यमानोऽपि वक्तुमशक्तक्षुत्तृषापीडितो रुदिते सति स्तनादिकं देयमिति मन्वानाः प्रयतन्ते ॥ २४ ॥
evaṃ bālatvamāpanno jaṃtustatrāpi svamalamūtralitpadeha ādhyātmikādipīḍyamāno'pi vaktumaśaktakṣuttṛṣāpīḍito rudite sati stanādikaṃ deyamiti manvānāḥ prayatante || 24 ||
Kaya nito, pagdating ng nilalang sa sanggol na gulang, ang katawan nito—kahit doon—ay nadudungisan ng sariling dumi at ihi; bagaman pinahihirapan ng panloob (ādhyātmika) at iba pang pagdurusa, hindi ito makapagsalita. Sa tindi ng gutom at uhaw, ito’y umiiyak; at ang mga nag-aalaga, sa pag-aakalang “dapat bigyan ng gatas at katulad,” ay nagsisikap magpakain at magpatahan.
Sanatkumāra (teaching Nārada in dialogue on saṁsāra and embodied suffering)
Vrata: none
Primary Rasa: karuna
Secondary Rasa: shanta
FAQs
It highlights the helplessness and inherent suffering of embodied existence even from infancy—unable to speak, driven by hunger and thirst—encouraging dispassion (vairāgya) and a turn toward liberation-oriented life.
While not naming bhakti directly, it frames saṁsāra as intrinsically painful and dependent, which supports the Purāṇic conclusion that taking refuge in Bhagavān (especially Viṣṇu-bhakti, as emphasized elsewhere in the Nārada Purāṇa) is the stable remedy beyond bodily conditions.
No specific Vedāṅga (like Vyākaraṇa, Jyotiṣa, or Kalpa) is taught in this verse; it is primarily a dharma–mokṣa reflection on the realities of birth and bodily limitation.