Shloka 25

Adhyaya 28 — Alarka Inquires into Varna and Ashrama Dharma; Madalasa Defines the Fourfold Duties

Sanskrit

तत्रारण्योपभोगश्च तपोभिश्चानुकरषणम् । भूमौ शय्या ब्रह्मचर्यं पितृदेवातिथिक्रिया ॥

Transliteration

tatrāraṇyopabhogaś ca tapobhiś cānukarṣaṇam | bhūmau śayyā brahmacaryaṃ pitṛdevātithikriyā ||

Translation

وہاں جنگل کے آشرم میں جنگل کی عطا کردہ غذا پر ہی گزارا کرے اور تپسیا کے ذریعے جسم کو ضبط میں رکھے۔ زمین پر سوئے، برہماچریہ اختیار کرے، اور پِتر، دیوتا اور مہمان کے لیے شاستر کے مطابق کرم ادا کرے۔

Word by Word

• तत्र: there
• तत्र: अधिकरण (Adhikaraṇa/Locative setting)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: तत्र (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (Avyaya), देशवाचक क्रियाविशेषण (locative adverb: ‘there’)

• आरण्योपभोगः: use/enjoyment of forest resources
• आरण्योपभोगः: कर्ता (Karta/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: आरण्य-उपभोग (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: पुंलिङ्ग (Masculine), प्रथमा (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular); षष्ठी-तत्पुरुषः/विशेषण-निर्देशः (‘of the forest’ + ‘enjoyment/use’)

• च: and
• च: समुच्चय (Conjunctive)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय (Avyaya), समुच्चयबोधक निपात (conjunction: ‘and’)

• तपोभिः: by austerities
• तपोभिः: करण (Karaṇa/Instrument)
• Type: Noun
• Root: तपस् (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), तृतीया (Instrumental/3rd), बहुवचन (Plural)

• च: and
• च: समुच्चय (Conjunctive)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: च (अव्यय)
• Form: अव्यय, समुच्चयबोधक (and)

• अनुकरषणम्: following/attraction (discipline of following)
• अनुकरषणम्: कर्ता (Karta/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: अनु-√कृष् (धातु) + अन (प्रत्यय) → अनुकरषण (प्रातिपदिक/कृदन्त-भाव)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा/द्वितीया (Nom./Acc.), एकवचन (Singular); भाववाचक कृदन्त (action-noun: ‘drawing after/attracting, following’)

• भूमौ: on the ground
• भूमौ: अधिकरण (Adhikaraṇa/Location)
• Type: Noun
• Root: भूमि (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग (Feminine), सप्तमी (Locative/7th), एकवचन (Singular)

• शय्या: bed (sleeping-place)
• शय्या: कर्ता (Karta/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: शय्या (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग (Feminine), प्रथमा (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular)

• ब्रह्मचर्यम्: celibacy/continence
• ब्रह्मचर्यम्: कर्ता (Karta/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: ब्रह्मचर्य (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: नपुंसकलिङ्ग (Neuter), प्रथमा/द्वितीया (Nom./Acc.), एकवचन (Singular)

• पितृदेवातिथिक्रिया: rites/service to ancestors, gods, and guests
• पितृदेवातिथिक्रिया: कर्ता (Karta/Subject)
• Type: Noun
• Root: पितृ-देव-अतिथि-क्रिया (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: स्त्रीलिङ्ग (Feminine), प्रथमा (Nominative/1st), एकवचन (Singular); समाहार-द्वन्द्वः (collective dvandva) + ‘क्रिया’ (service/rites)

Speakers

• Not specified in input (Dharma-instruction voice within Markandeya Purāṇa’s didactic narrative)

Verse Rasa

{ "primaryRasa": "shanta", "secondaryRasa": "bhakti", "rasaIntensity": 0, "emotionalArcPosition": "", "moodDescriptors": [] }

Key Themes

• Dharma
• Āśrama system
• Vānaprastha
• Tapas
• Pitṛ-yajña
• Atithi-sevā

FAQs

What is the philosophical or ethical takeaway?

Vānaprastha is presented as a disciplined transition from household life: simplifying consumption, intensifying tapas, and maintaining obligations of reverence (ancestors, deities) and hospitality (guests).

How does this fit the Pancalakshana (5 characteristics)?

Primarily Dharma-śikṣā within the Purāṇic instruction stream; not directly sarga/pratisarga/vaṃśa/manvantara/vaṃśānucarita, though it supports social order that Purāṇas preserve alongside genealogies.

What is the esoteric significance?

Forest subsistence and sleeping on earth symbolize grounding the ego; continence and tapas redirect vitality toward inner clarity, while pitṛ-deva-atithi rites keep the renunciant aligned with cosmic reciprocity rather than mere self-denial.