Padma Purana — Bhumi Khanda, Shloka 53
The Deeds of Sukalā (Vena Episode): Husband as Tīrtha & Pativratā-Dharma
तेनाहं दुःखिता सख्यो वियोगेनाति पीडिता । जीवनाशो वरं श्रेष्ठो वरं वै विषभक्षणम्
tenāhaṃ duḥkhitā sakhyo viyogenāti pīḍitā | jīvanāśo varaṃ śreṣṭho varaṃ vai viṣabhakṣaṇam
اے سہیلیوں، اس لیے میں غمگین ہوں—جدائی سے شدید اذیت میں ہوں۔ زندگی کا ختم ہو جانا بہتر ہے، بلکہ زہر کھا لینا بھی بہتر ہے۔
Unspecified female speaker (addressing her friends, sakhyaḥ)
Concept: Unregulated grief can turn toward self-harm; dharma literature often stages such extremes to invite counsel, restraint, and refuge in the divine.
Application: When overwhelmed by loss, seek support (friends, elders, spiritual counsel) and redirect pain into prayer, service, and stabilizing routines rather than impulsive harm.
Primary Rasa: karuna
Secondary Rasa: bhayanaka
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"A woman collapses onto the ground, hair loosened, hands reaching toward her friends as if pleading for relief from the burning pain of separation. Her companions form a protective circle, their faces anxious, while a dark cup of poison and a distant funeral pyre silhouette appear as symbolic temptations of despair.","primary_figures":["pativratā wife","sakhīs (female friends/companions)"],"setting":"courtyard or grove edge near the village, with symbolic elements (poison cup, distant fire) rendered as metaphorical motifs","lighting_mood":"stormy twilight","color_palette":["charcoal gray","blood red","dull copper","midnight blue","pale ash"],"tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore painting style: dramatic viraha tableau with the wife in the center, sakhīs supporting her, symbolic poison vessel and distant flames; gold leaf used sparingly to heighten emotional contrast, rich reds and dark blues, ornate borders framing the scene like a moral drama panel.","pahari_prompt":"Pahari miniature style: expressive yet restrained sorrow scene, the wife leaning into a friend’s shoulder, delicate tear lines, twilight sky gradient; symbolic poison cup placed subtly, naturalistic trees and a winding path fading into distance.","kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala mural style: heightened expression with bold outlines, the wife’s anguished eyes and dynamic hand gestures; stylized flame motif at the edge, strong red/black contrasts, rhythmic decorative bands.","pichwai_prompt":"Pichwai cloth painting style: narrative border with lotus and vine motifs; central group of women in lament, peacocks with drooping tails to mirror sorrow, deep indigo background with gold floral borders, symbolic elements integrated as decorative motifs."}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"dramatic","suggested_raga":"Darbari","pace":"fast-dramatic","voice_tone":"emotional","sound_elements":["thunder rumble","rushing wind","sobbing breaths between lines","sudden silence","low drum pulse"]}
Sandhi Resolution Notes: तेनाहम् = तेन + अहम्; वियोगेनाति = वियोगेन + अति; (no further mandatory sandhi splits).
FAQs
The verse centers on viraha (anguish of separation), expressed as grief so intense that death or poison seems preferable.
No. It is a hyperbolic lament common in Sanskrit poetry and Purāṇic narrative, emphasizing the extremity of sorrow rather than prescribing an ethical act.
Addressing companions frames the line as a personal confession within a dialogue or narrative scene, intensifying the immediacy of the speaker’s distress.