Shloka 27
Nīti for Calamity, Wealth, Friendship, Charity, and Restraint of Kāma
न देवेभ्यो न विप्रोभ्यो बन्धुभ्यो नैव चात्मने / कदर्यस्य धनं याति त्वग्नितस्करराजसु
na devebhyo na viprobhyo bandhubhyo naiva cātmane / kadaryasya dhanaṃ yāti tvagnitaskararājasu
کنجوس کا مال نہ دیوتاؤں کے کام آتا ہے، نہ برہمنوں کے، نہ رشتہ داروں کے، نہ خود اس کے؛ وہ جلدی بیماری، آگ، چور اور بادشاہ کے حصے میں چلا جاتا ہے۔
Lord Vishnu (speaking to Garuda/Vinata-putra)
Concept: Miserliness blocks dharmic beneficiaries; the ‘fruit’ of hoarded wealth manifests as calamities—disease, fire, theft, and state extraction.
Vedantic Theme: Artha’s instability; karma as moral causality operating through worldly instruments; tyāga as antidote to bondage.
Application: Support religious/community obligations, family duties, and personal well-being; insure and safeguard, but primarily ‘safeguard’ through ethical use and giving.
Primary Rasa: shanta
Secondary Rasa: bhayanaka
Type: ethical instruction (general)
Related Themes: Garuda Purana: lists of artha-vināśa causes and dāna-phalāni (thematic vicinity)
FAQs
This verse stresses that wealth gains meaning when shared—through offerings to the Devas and support of vipras/relatives—otherwise it is eventually lost through unavoidable forces like illness, fire, theft, or state exactions.
By implying that hoarding blocks merit (punya) creation; in Garuda Purana’s moral framework, the soul’s post-death condition is shaped by such choices, and unused wealth fails to become spiritual support.
Use wealth consciously: budget for charity/service, support learning and family duties, and avoid compulsive hoarding—since unshared wealth often disappears through medical costs, accidents, theft, or taxes.