Shloka 3

Account of the Ripening of Karma

Childlessness, Offspring, and Remedial Dharma

Devanagari script

नारद उवाच । पितामह महाप्राज्ञ सर्वतत्त्वार्थपारग । अपुत्रो वै भवेन्मर्त्यः कर्मणा केन पद्मज

Transliteration

nārada uvāca | pitāmaha mahāprājña sarvatattvārthapāraga | aputro vai bhavenmartyaḥ karmaṇā kena padmaja

Translation

Wika ni Nārada: “O Pitāmaha, dakilang marunong, nakaaalam sa diwa ng lahat ng tattva—sa anong gawa, O Padmajā (Brahmā), nagiging walang anak ang isang mortal?”

Word by Word

नारदःNarada

उवाचsaid

पितामहO Grandfather (Brahmā)

महाप्राज्ञO very wise one

सर्वतत्त्वार्थपारगO knower of the meaning of all principles

अपुत्रःsonless

वैindeed

भवेत्would become / may be

मर्त्यःa mortal man

कर्मणाby what deed

केनby which? / by what?

पद्मजO lotus-born (Brahmā)

Speaker

Nārada

Verse Rasa

Primary Rasa: karuna

Secondary Rasa: shanta

Geographic Context

Type: celestial_realm

Sandhi Resolution Notes

Sandhi Resolution Notes: भवेन्मर्त्यः = भवेत् + मर्त्यः; सर्वतत्त्वार्थपारग = सर्व + तत्त्व + अर्थ + पारग (समास); पद्मज = पद्मात् जातः (तत्पुरुष).

Characters & Entities

Nārada

Brahmā (Pitāmaha, Padmaja)

FAQs

Who is being addressed as “Pitāmaha” and “Padmaja” in this verse?

Both epithets refer to Brahmā: “Pitāmaha” means the Grandfather of beings, and “Padmaja” means “lotus-born,” indicating his birth from the lotus.

What is the central question posed in this śloka?

Nārada asks which specific karma (deed/action) results in a mortal becoming aputra—childless (often phrased traditionally as “without a son,” but broadly indicating lack of progeny).

What ethical idea is implied by linking childlessness with karma?

The verse frames life outcomes as connected to moral causality (karma-phala), implying that personal conduct and past actions are believed to shape major life circumstances.