Shloka 145

Adhyaya 8 — Vasu's Redemption

Sanskrit

अथापश्यत् खरं देहं हस्तिनं वानरं पशुम् । छागं विडालं कङ्कञ्च गामविं पक्षिणं कृमिम् ॥

Transliteration

athāpaśyat kharaṃ dehaṃ hastinaṃ vānaraṃ paśum / chāgaṃ viḍālaṃ kaṅkañ ca gāmaviṃ pakṣiṇaṃ kṛmim

Translation

پھر اس نے (جانداروں کو) گدھے، ہاتھی، بندر اور درندے کے جسم اختیار کرتے دیکھا؛ بکری، بلی اور بگلے کے بھی؛ نیز گائے، پرندے اور کیڑے کے جسم بھی۔

Word by Word

• atha: then
• atha: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: atha (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya, discourse particle/adverb (अनन्तरार्थक) ‘then/next’

• apaśyat: saw
• apaśyat: Kriyā (क्रिया)
• Type: Verb
• Root: apa√dṛś (धातु)
• Form: Imperfect (लङ्), 3rd person, Singular, Parasmaipada

• kharaṃ: a donkey
• kharaṃ: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: khara (खर) (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular

• deham: a body
• deham: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: deha (देह) (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular

• hastinam: an elephant
• hastinam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: hastin (हस्तिन्) (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• vānaram: a monkey
• vānaram: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: vānara (वानर) (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• paśum: a beast/animal
• paśum: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: paśu (पशु) (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• chāgam: a goat
• chāgam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: chāga (छाग) (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• viḍālam: a cat
• viḍālam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: viḍāla (विडाल) (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• kaṅkam: a heron
• kaṅkam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kaṅka (कङ्क) (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• ca: and
• ca: Sambandha (सम्बन्ध)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya, conjunction

• gāmavīm: a cow (female bovine)
• gāmavīm: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: gāmavī (गामवी) (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine, Accusative (2nd/द्वितीया), Singular

• pakṣiṇam: a bird
• pakṣiṇam: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: pakṣin (पक्षिन्) (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

• kṛmim: a worm
• kṛmim: Karma (कर्म)
• Type: Noun
• Root: kṛmi (कृमि) (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Accusative, Singular

Speakers

• Narratorial voice within the frame (speaker not determinable from excerpt alone)

Verse Rasa

{ "primaryRasa": "adbhuta", "secondaryRasa": "śānta", "rasaIntensity": 0, "emotionalArcPosition": "", "moodDescriptors": [] }

Key Themes

• Saṃsāra
• Transmigration
• Karmic diversity of births

FAQs

What is the philosophical or ethical takeaway?

By listing disparate embodiments, the text stresses that saṃsāra is not linear improvement; it is unstable and contingent on karma and dispositions, motivating restraint and dharmic living.

How does this fit the Pancalakshana (5 characteristics)?

Didactic narrative (Vamśānucarita/ākhyāna-style instruction) used to teach dharma through the spectacle of rebirth; not a cosmological Sarga passage.

What is the esoteric significance?

The variety of bodies suggests the jīva’s identification with guṇas: heaviness/servitude (donkey), pride/power (elephant), restlessness (monkey), predation (heron), and insignificance (worm).