Padma Purana — Bhumi Khanda, Shloka 61
The Tale of Sukalā: Testing Pativratā Fidelity and the Body-as-House Teaching
एतद्गृहस्य वार्द्धक्यं कथितं शृणु दूतिके । पतमानं गृहं दृष्ट्वा गृहस्वामी परित्यजेत्
etadgṛhasya vārddhakyaṃ kathitaṃ śṛṇu dūtike | patamānaṃ gṛhaṃ dṛṣṭvā gṛhasvāmī parityajet
اس گھر کی ‘بڑھاپے’ یعنی زوال کی حالت یوں بیان کی گئی ہے—سن، اے پیامبرہ۔ جو گھر گرتا ہوا دکھائی دے، گھر کا مالک اسے چھوڑ دے۔
Unspecified in the provided excerpt (addressing a dūtikā, ‘female messenger’).
Concept: When the ‘house’ (body/worldly situation) is collapsing, the wise master should abandon attachment and seek a safer refuge—spiritual shelter in Bhagavān.
Application: Practice timely letting-go: simplify possessions, reduce ego-investment in status, and intensify sādhana before decline; treat aging/illness as prompts to deepen devotion rather than panic.
Primary Rasa: shanta
Secondary Rasa: karuna
Visual Art Cues: {"scene_description":"A female messenger stands at the threshold as an old house sags, beams splitting and plaster falling like dust. The householder, calm yet resolute, steps away carrying only prayer beads and a small bundle, while a distant path leads toward a serene Viṣṇu shrine—symbolizing the move from collapsing shelter to eternal refuge.","primary_figures":["Dūtikā (female messenger)","Householder (gṛhasvāmin)","Viṣṇu (as distant sanctuary, optional)"],"setting":"Courtyard of an aging home with cracked pillars, fallen tiles, and a road leading to a temple or forest hermitage; a threshold moment of departure.","lighting_mood":"golden dawn","color_palette":["warm terracotta","smoke gray","pale turmeric","peacock blue","antique gold"],"tanjore_prompt":"Tanjore painting style: the moment of renunciation—householder stepping away from a collapsing house while the dūtikā gestures in warning; ornate gold leaf on the distant Viṣṇu shrine and on the border, rich reds/greens in textiles, jewel-like detailing on ornaments, stylized architecture with traditional South Indian motifs.","pahari_prompt":"Pahari miniature style: intimate narrative at a courtyard—delicate depiction of cracked beams and falling plaster, the messenger’s expressive posture, the householder’s composed face; cool morning light, distant temple on a hill, fine floral details along the path.","kerala_mural_prompt":"Kerala mural style: bold outlines of the sagging house and the departing master, the dūtikā in profile with emphatic hand gesture; natural pigments, strong ochre-red background, a small luminous Viṣṇu icon at the horizon as the true āśraya.","pichwai_prompt":"Pichwai cloth painting style: symbolic ‘leaving the collapsing house’ at the lower register, with the upper register dominated by lotus-framed Kṛṣṇa/Viṣṇu as refuge; intricate floral borders, cows and peacocks near the temple path, deep blues and gold accents, narrative panels like a devotional textile."}
Audio Atmosphere: {"recitation_mood":"narrative","suggested_raga":"Desh","pace":"moderate-narrative","voice_tone":"authoritative","sound_elements":["creaking wood","falling dust","distant temple bell","soft conch"]}
Sandhi Resolution Notes: एतत् + गृहस्य → एतद्गृहस्य (त् + ग् → द्ग्).
FAQs
It advises practical discernment: when a situation (symbolized by a collapsing house) is clearly failing and unsafe, one should let it go rather than cling to it.
Literally it is a house, but Purāṇic discourse often allows a broader reading: a deteriorating ‘support’—such as a failing arrangement or attachment—should be relinquished when it can no longer sustain life properly.
The verse directly addresses a dūtikā (female messenger), but the larger narrative context is not included in the excerpt, so the specific identity cannot be confirmed from this line alone.